Survey: Branstad maintains 16-point lead on Culver

Former Gov. Terry Branstad is maintaining a double-digit lead over incumbent Gov. Chet Culver, according to the latest Rasmussen Reports survey.

Rasmussen's telephone survey of likely voters in the state shows Branstad leading Culver by 16 points, 52 percent to 36 percent. Six percent prefer some other candidate, and 6 percent are undecided.

Branstad, a Republican who served as governor from 1983 to 1999, held virtually identical leads over the Democratic incumbent a month ago and in the first survey of the race last September.

Rasmussen found Culver is doing better against another Republican gubernatorial hopeful, Bob Vander Plaats, a Sioux City businessman and former high school principal with failed runs for governor and lieutenant governor under his belt. Vander Plaats led Culver by six points a month ago but now holds a narrow 42 percent to 40 percent lead. Eight percent favor another candidate, and 11 percent are undecided.

Culver also barely edges a newcomer in the race, Rep. Rod Roberts of Carroll, by 40 percent to 38 percent margin. Given this match-up, 10 percent of Iowa voters favor another candidate, and 13 percent are undecided.

Republicans will pick their gubernatorial candidate in a June 8 primary.

Clearly a problem for Culver is that for the second month in a row, just 41 percent of voters in the state approve of the job he's doing, with 11 percent who Strongly Approve, Rasmussen reported. Fifty-seven percent disapprove of his job performance, including 33 percent who Strongly Disapprove.

Other findings include:

• Male voters prefer the Republican over Culver in all three match-ups, but Branstad is the only GOP hopeful who wins female voters away from the incumbent. Voters not affiliated with either major party favor the Republicans by double-digit margins.
• Nineteen percent of all Iowa voters hold a very favorable opinion of Culver, while 30 percent view him very unfavorably.

Branstad is viewed very favorably by 26 percent and very unfavorably by 18 percent.

For Vander Plaats, very favorables and very unfavorables both total 15 percent.

Roberts is regarded very favorably by 6 percent and very unfavorably by 6 percent.

• Just 6 percent of voters in the state have no opinion of either Culver or Branstad. But 27 percent don't know enough about Vander Plaats to venture even a soft favorable or unfavorable opinion of him. Forty-two percent have no opinion of Roberts.