LEGAL NEWSLINE

COLUMBUS, Ohio (Legal Newsline) – A new poll shows Gov. John Kasich holds a 12-point lead over his Democratic challenger, Cuyahoga County Executive Ed FitzGerald.

Kasich leads FitzGerald by a 48-36 percent margin, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday.

A previous May 14 Quinnipiac survey found Kasich led FitzGerald 50-35 percent, meaning FitzGerald has closed the differential by three points over the past few months.

"County Executive Ed FitzGerald is gaining little or no ground in his bid to unseat incumbent Gov. John Kasich. The Democratic nominee still has a long way to go with little more than three months until Election Day," said Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Poll.

"Almost two-thirds of registered voters don't know enough about FitzGerald to have an opinion of him. That's an awful lot of Ohioans who still have to be introduced to him. This survey was conducted during the period in which the Democrat had just begun his television advertising buy."

The poll further shows the traditional gender gap exists, as men back the Republican 53-31 percent, while women are divided, with 43 percent for Kasich and 41 percent for FitzGerald.

Kasich leads 92-2 percent among Republicans and 47-28 percent among independent voters, while Democrats lean to FitzGerald by a 78-9 percent margin.

Ohio voters approve 55-31 percent of the job Kasich is doing. Voters say 50-37 percent that he deserves reelection, the poll shows.

Less than 100 days before election, 65 percent of Ohio voters don't know enough about FitzGerald to form an opinion of him.

"Not only does Gov. Kasich hold a solid lead, but he also is viewed as better able to handle the economy and jobs and even normally Democratic issues such as abortion and health care," Brown said. "He also has the edge on character traits. And 50 percent or more of voters say he deserves another term and think he is doing a good job in his first term in office.

From July 24-28, Quinnipiac University surveyed 1,366 registered voters.

Reach David Yates at elections@legalnewsline.com