Polls offer Dems mixed news in Connecticut

A new poll gives Republican Linda McMahon a slight lead over Democrat Chris Murphy, the second such poll this month showing the wrestling executive up over her opponent.

The Quinnipiac University poll gives McMahon a 3-percentage-point lead over Murphy, and a 12-percentage-point lead among men, while Murphy retains a slight lead among female voters. A full 20 percent of voters, however, remain amenable to either party, indicating the two have substantial room for improvement when it comes to support levels.

Murphy, however, might have more work on that front, as 32 percent of voters say they haven't heard enough about him to decide how they feel about him — almost twice as many as the 18 percent of voters who didn't know McMahon.

But President Obama still holds a 7-percentage-point lead over Mitt Romney, indicating Republicans in general could face a steeper climb to take the state.

Another poll, from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, offers better news for Dems, as it shows Elizabeth Esty with a 9-point advantage over challenger Andrew Roraback. The poll also gives a generic Democrat a 10-point lead over a generic Republican, though the partisan background of the poll should be taken into account.

The Quinnipiac poll was conducted from Aug. 22-26 among 1,472 likely voters and has a margin of error of 2.6 percentage points. The DCCC poll was conducted Aug. 21-23 among 402 likely voters, and has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.9 points.

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