Whitmer expands lead over Dixon in Michigan governor race: poll

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) has expanded her lead over Republican challenger Tudor Dixon in the state’s gubernatorial race, according to a new Detroit News/WDIV-TV poll. 

The poll, published on Wednesday, found that 48 percent of respondents said they’ll support Whitmer in November’s election while 35 percent of those surveyed said they back Dixon, a political commentator and first-time candidate. 

The 13-point margin is a 2-point increase from a similar poll published in July that showed Whitmer with an 11-point lead over Dixon, who has the backing of former President Trump.

Four percent of respondents said they’ll lend their support to a third-party candidate, and 13 percent of respondents said they are undecided on their choice for Michigan governor. 

Fifty-four percent of the poll’s respondents said they approve of the job that Whitmer has done as Michigan’s governor, which marks a slight decline from previous polls.

Eighty-eight percent of respondents who identify themselves as a “strongly Democratic” approve of the job Whitmer is doing as the state’s governor, while 3 percent of respondents who identify themselves as  “strong Republican” agree with the same sentiment. 

Forty-five percent of Independent respondents said they view Whitmer favorably. 

When asked the same question, 40 percent of respondents said they view Dixon favorably as a gubernatorial candidate. 

Among hot-button issues, 34 percent of respondents said that abortion/women’s rights were the issue that motivated them most in this year’s midterm, while other respondents noted inflation, jobs and the economy, threats to our democracy, and education as more important topics to them. 

The Detroit News/WDIV-TV poll was conducted Aug. 29-Sept. 1 with 600 respondents participating in the survey. The poll’s margin of error is 4 percentage points.