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If U.S. Sen. Mark Warner wants to be governor of Virginia again in 2013, he would begin the campaign as the overwhelming favorite, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today. If Warner does not want another four years in the Executive Mansion in Richmond, Terry McAuliffe, the former Democratic National Committee Chair, and Republicans Bill Bolling, the lieutenant governor, and Ken Cuccinelli, the state attorney general, start off basically even. Warner, who says he will decide whether to run for governor or remain in the U.S. Senate by Thanksgiving, tops Lt. Gov. Bolling 53 - 33 percent and beats Attorney General Cuccinelli 52 - 34 percent, the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University survey finds. If McAuliffe is the Democratic candidate, he would get 38 percent to 36 percent for Bolling, and 41 percent to 37 percent for Cuccinelli. \"If Sen. Mark Warner decides to run, he begins the campaign as the prohibitive favorite,\" said Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. \"He is much better known and much better liked than either of the Republican aspirants and his job approval rating - 60 percent - is the highest of any statewide elected official. \"Terry McAuliffe is another story, however. He is not well known and his rating among those who have an opinion of him it is not all that impressive. Bolling also is not well known, although he is slightly better liked at this point than is McAuliffe. Cuccinelli is somewhat better known than Bolling and McAuliffe. At this point McAuliffe is benefitting from his Democratic identification, which reflects the party's positive image in the state after President Barack Obama's victory and the president's 52 percent job approval.\" \"Virginia voters say 35 - 18 percent that they would prefer Warner stay in the U.S. Senate, rather than run for governor. Another 30 percent, mostly Republicans, want him to do neither,\" Brown added. Asked whether they have a positive or negative view of the potential candidates for governor, Warner gets a 58 - 20 percent favorable verdict: *\tMcAuliffe gets a 17 - 13 percent favorability with 68 percent who don't know enough about him to form an opinion; *\tCuccinelli is at 29 - 24 percent, with 45 percent who don't know enough about him; *\tBolling gets a 20 - 8 percent score, with 70 percent who don't know enough about him. Among Republicans, Cuccinelli has a 59 - 5 percent favorability rating, while Bolling is at 44 - 2 percent favorable. Virginia registered voters say 58 - 39 percent they are optimistic about the next four years with Obama as president. By the end of the president's second term, they expect 51 - 31 percent that the economy will be better than it is now. Voters say 58 - 37 percent that Obama and congressional Democrats are more likely to make a \"good faith\" effort to work with congressional Republicans on issues important to voters. They split 46 - 47 percent on whether congressional Republicans will make a \"good faith\" effort. From November 8 - 12, Quinnipiac University surveyed 1,469 registered voters with a margin of error of +/- 2.6 percentage points. Live interviewers call land lines and cell phones. The Quinnipiac University Poll, directed by Douglas Schwartz, Ph.D., conducts public opinion surveys in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Florida, Ohio, Virginia and the nation as a public service and for research. For more data or RSS feed- http://www.quinnipiac.edu/polling.xml, call (203) 582-5201, or follow us on Twitter."} Skip to Content

Sen. Warner Has Big Early Lead In Virginia Gov Race, Quinnipiac University Poll Finds; Voters Say Economy Will Get Better With Obama

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