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Mitch McConnell's Campaign Poll Shows Higher Approval, Lead Over Ashley Judd

The campaign to re-elect Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell leaked an internal poll showing him with a far better approval rating than the Public Policy Polling survey released earlier this month.

Earlier this month, PPP showed Kentucky's senior Senator is the most unpopular Senator in the country with a dismal 37 percent approval rating and a 55 percent disapproval.

But McConnell's re-election campaign has him at 51 percent approval and only 40 percent disapproving.

What's interesting is that both the PPP and McConnell numbers show the GOP leader ahead of Democratic activist and actress Ashley Judd—the most popular choice for Kentucky Democrats—by just a four-point margin.

From The Washington Post:

The poll also tested a number of GOP lines of attack on Judd, including the fact that she has homes in Scotland and Tennessee but not her native Kentucky, her support for Obamacare and abortion rights and her anti-coal comments. All, as one might expect, poll poorly in conservative Kentucky and move voters into McConnell’s camp.

Observers argue that McConnell's camp is trying to further trash the PPP findings, which campaign manager Jesse Benton blasted as Democratic-leaning in a statement last week.

But McConnell supporters say this shows the best choice for Democrats is far outside the mainstream of Kentucky voters and that her chances plummet when the Hollywood star's liberal views are scrutinized.

Copyright 2012 89.3 WFPL News Louisville

Philip Bailey is a reporter and political correspondent for Kentucky Public Radio based out of WFPL in Louisville, Kentucky.
Phillip M. Bailey became WFPL's political editor in 2011, covering city, state and regional campaigns and elected officials. He also covers Metro Government, including the mayor's office and Metro Council. Before coming to WFPL, Phillip worked for three years as a staff writer at LEO Weekly and was a fellow at the Academy of Alternative Journalism at Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism.
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