Just five days before election day, a new KING 5 poll finds the race for governor is a dead heat, with Democrat Jay Inslee at 47 percent, Republican Rob McKenna at 46 percent — within the poll’s margin of error.
The poll conducted by SurveyUSA Oct. 28-31 finds McKenna has closed the gap in the past month, with the undecided vote standing at 7 percent. Our last poll two weeks ago also showed the race within the margin of error, with Inslee ahead by three points. A month ago, Inslee was ahead by five points in our poll.
The governor’s race can be influenced by presidential politics, and our KING 5 poll finds no movement in Washington state with Democrat Barack Obama maintaining a 14-point lead over Republican Mitt Romney, 54 percent to 40 percent.
The poll also shows that the race over Referendum 74 has tightened. The referendum on same-sex marriage has 52 percent approving with 43 percent saying they’ll reject. With ballot measures, undecided votes often lean “no” toward the end, and the latest KING 5 poll finds 5 percent saying they’re not sure. Two weeks ago, the KING 5 poll had the measure leading at 54 percent to 41 percent.
Meanwhile, I-502 which would legalize some possession of marijuana stands at 56 percent approval, with 37 percent saying they would reject and 7 percent not sure.
The poll of 555 likely voters has a margin of error of 4.2 percent.
