Poll: Specter’s struggles continue, especially amongst GOP

Sen. Arlen Specter’s (R) prospects of winning reelection in 2010 are looking progressively tougher, with a new independent poll showing a majority of Pennsylvanians prefer to elect a new senator.

53 percent of Pennsylvania voters said that they would prefer to elect someone new to replace Specter in 2010, according to a Susquehanna Polling and Research survey released over the weekend. 38 percent of voters said they supported the long-serving Republican senator in his reelection efforts. Eight percent said they were undecided.

Perhaps more disturbingly for Specter, the demographic with the most desire to see someone new elected is not Democrats, but rather other Republicans.

66 percent of Pennsylvania Republicans said the state should elect someone new, while 26 percent said they supported Specter’s reelection. Democrats, by contrast, supported Specter 49-42. Specter also faces an uphill climb with indepdents, of which 55 opposed his reelection and 39 percent supported it.

Several Republicans, including Club for Growth Chairman Pat Toomey (who came within points of knocking off Specter in 2004), have indicated an interest in seeing Specter face a primary challenge from his right.

The poll, conducted Feb. 23-26, has a 3.7 percent margin of error, except for the smaller party subgroups. Those responses have a five percent margin of error.