Kirk, Duckworth lead their parties ahead of Illinois U.S. Senate primary

Posted on February 23, 2016

Tammy Duckworth and Mark Kirk lead their respective parties in the race for U.S. Senate in a new poll. (WJBC file photos)

By Joe Ragusa

CARBONDALE – A new poll says Mark Kirk and Tammy Duckworth have large leads heading into their respective primaries for Illinois’ U.S. Senate seat.

Kirk has a 53-14 percent lead over Republican primary opponent James Marter in the poll from SIU’s Paul Simon Public Policy Institute.

SIU professor John Jackson said that’s because Marter isn’t well known.

“I think there hasn’t really been a lot of campaigning on the opposition’s side,” Jackson said. “(Marter) did file and qualified for the ballot, but nevertheless, I certainly haven’t seen any media (appearances) or any of the other earmarks of a vital campaign.”

Duckworth had 52 percent of the Democratic votes, while Chicago Urban League CEO Andrea Zopp has six percent and State Sen. Napoleon Harris has four percent.

Jackson said Duckworth, who has represented Illinois’ 8th Congressional District since 2013, benefits from being the establishment candidate.

“Tammy Duckworth has been the party establishment, Democratic National Committee choice. Senator (Dick) Durbin has endorsed her. She was regarded as being the strongest candidate from the start,” Jackson said.

At least one-third of voters on both sides are unsure of who they will vote for in next month’s primary.

The poll also measured the approval ratings for both Kirk and U.S. Senator Dick Durbin. Kirk has an approval rating of 39 percent and Jackson said if Kirk wants to keep his seat, that number needs to be around 50 percent.

“This is one indicator of why this race is regarded to be one of those that the Democrats could take over,” Jackson said.

Durbin’s approval rating was 51 percent.

Joe Ragusa can be reached at [email protected].

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