In one of the most closely watched Senate races, investment banker Mike Gibbons leads the Republican primary field to fill retiring Ohio Sen. Rob Portman's seat, according to a poll from The Hill/Emerson College poll released on Monday.
Gibbons is in first place with 22%, while former state Treasurer Josh Mandel is in second with 15%. Author and businessman J.D. Vance is third in the survey with 8%, while former state GOP Chair Jane Timken and state Sen. Matt Dolan each have 6% support.
However, 39% of the respondents in the poll were undecided, emphasizing the general consensus that the race is up for grabs.
The survey was conducted after Portman endorsed Timken to be his successor. Following that, Timken received backing as well from Sens. Joni Ernst (Iowa), Shelley Moore-Capito (West Virginia) and Deb Fischer (Nebraska).
- However, the survey's results raise questions about the importance of Portman's endorsement, with 38% saying his support makes them less likely to back Timken, while 43% said it makes no difference and only 19% saying it makes them more likely to vote for Timken.
- When asked, however, if an endorsement from former President Donald Trump would make voters more likely to support that candidate, 62% of Republicans said it would, 18% said it would make them less likely to back the endorsed candidate and 21% said it would make no difference.
- In the Democratic primary, Rep. Tim Ryan holds a large advantage at 31%, with tech executive Traci Johnson and social worker LaShondra Tinsley both at 5%. Former senior adviser at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Morgan Harper is at 4%, while a whopping 51% are undecided.
- President Joe Biden's approval rating is at only 40%, with 54% disapproving.
The poll was conducted on February 25-26. The GOP primary sample consisted of 410 voters with a margin of error of 4.8 percentage points, while the Democratic primary sample had 313 voters with a margin of error of 5.5 percentage points, and the general election sample was 723 voters with a margin of error of 5.5 percentage points.