Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton lead with likely Michigan primary election voters, according to two polls released Sunday.
In the GOP primary race, Trump received 41 per cent of support from respondents, according to a NBC News/Wall Street Journal/Marist poll. Sen. Ted Cruz had 22 percent support, while Sen. Marco Rubio received just 17 per cent and Ohio Gov. John Kasich came in at 13 per cent. Only 5 per cent were undecided in the poll. Marist surveyed 482 Republican likely primary voters from March 1 to March 3.
A YouGov/CBS poll released Sunday also showed Trump at 39 percent in Michigan, far ahead of Cruz at 24 percent. Rubio scored 16 percent and Kasich was in fourth place, with 15 percent. The March 2 to March 4 poll included 638 likely GOP primary voters.
The two polls are every different from a poll by American Research Group, released late Saturday, which showed Kasich beating Trump, 33 percent to 31 percent.
That ARG poll was conducted March 4 and March 5, and it shows Kasich doubling his mid-February rating of 17 percent. But the poll was based on a small sample of 284 self-identified Republicans, plus responses from 116 independents and Democrats.
When matched up head-to-head, Cruz does better against Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders, according to the Marist survey. Clinton beat Trump 53 per cent to 36 per cent in a hypothetical head-to-head race. Cruz polled better than Trump in these match-ups, losing to Clinton by only 7 per cent, said the Marist poll.
The YouGov/CBS poll showed Clinton beating Sanders, 55 percent to 44 percent, in Michigan. That Democratic poll questioned 597 likely Democratic primary voters, and was conducted March 2 to March 4.
Clinton received 72 per cent of support, far outpacing Sanders’ 22 percent support. Democratic voters were more resolute in their decisions with 72 per cent strongly committed to their chosen candidate, 22 percent somewhat committed and a mere 5 per cent that expressed a willingness to vote differently.
Clinton edges up among African American voters with 76 per cent to Sanders’ 21 per cent. However self-identified independent voters strongly favor Sanders over Clinton by a margin of 27 points. The survey also showed that voters under age 45 backed Sanders, while voters above age 45 favored Clinton.
Sunday night brings a Democratic party debate between Clinton and Sanders in Flint, Michigan.
Voters in Michigan and Mississippi will vote on both Republican and Democratic candidates on Tuesday. Republican candidates also will be up for election in Hawaii and Idaho on that day.
Follow Michelle Moons on Twitter @MichelleDiana
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.