THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, August 1, 1995 TAG: 9508010278
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY WARREN FISKE, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Short : 44 lines
Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole, R-Kansas, is the early favorite of Virginians in next year's presidential race, according to a new poll.
Dole held a 47 percent to 42 percent lead over President Clinton in a survey of 826 registered state voters conducted last week by Mason-Dixon Political/Media Research Inc. of Columbia, Md.
The results are hardly surprising. Virginia has voted Republican in 10 of the past 11 presidential elections, including in 1992, when Clinton failed to carry the state against George Bush.
The poll suggests that Dole is the strong favorite among Virginia Republicans for the GOP presidential nomination. Of the 235 voters who identified themselves as Republicans, 49 percent backed Dole, 15 percent supported Sen. Phil Gramm of Texas, 8 percent endorsed conservative commentator Pat Buchanan and 6 percent backed former Gov. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee. No other Republican candidate received more than 3 percent support.
Clinton's best chance for carrying Virginia may lie in hoping that someone other than Dole captures the GOP nomination. Clinton would win a matchup against Gramm, 47 percent to 37 percent, the poll indicated.
Clinton's fortunes also improve if retired Gen. Colin Powell enters the race as an independent. In a three-way race, Powell would take away twice as many votes from Dole as he would from Clinton, according to the survey. Clinton would win the matchup with 34 percent of the vote, followed by Dole at 31 percent and Powell at 23 percent.
Powell has been silent about his presidential intentions. Sixty-four percent of Virginia voters said they have a positive impression of the former general, and only 3 percent said they view him negatively.
In contrast, 42 percent said they like Clinton, and 36 percent said they dislike him. Dole received a 44 percent positive rating and 27 percent negative.
KEYWORDS: PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION 1996 SURVEY by CNB