Vander Plaats leads GOP field in poll

CEDAR RAPIDS -- More than 10 months until the 2010 Republican gubernatorial primary, Bob Vander Plaats has a wide lead on the field.

Vander Plaats, the GOP's candidate for lieutenant governor in 2006, was preferred by 46 percent of registered Republicans polled by Consumer Research of Washington, DC, for the conservative blog, TheIowaRepublican.com.

"Polls are great if you're leading," Vander Plaats quipped in Cedar Rapids Wednesday. "I wouldn't have been surprised if "don't know" had been at 46 percent."

"Don't know" was the runner-up in the poll at 27 percent with former House Speaker Christopher Rants scoring 14 percent of those answering the "if the primary were held today" questions.

What is encouraging, Vander Plaats said, is that all of the Republicans are saying roughly the same thing about first-term Democrat Gov. Chet Culver leading the state in the wrong direction.

"The bulls-eye is still on Chet Culver," he said, noting that another question from the poll found 53 percent of Iowans want a new governor.

Despite the separation between Vander Plaats and the rest of the field, the former school teacher and administrator isn't taking the nomination for granted. It does reflect the fact he sought the GOP nomination in 2002 and 2006 as well as his "vibrant network" of supporters, Vander Plaats said, and gives him a window of opportunity to build his organization and raise campaign funds.

At the time the poll was taken earlier this month, Cedar Rapids business executive Christian Fong of Cedar Rapids and Senate Minority Leader Paul McKinley of Chariton were just getting into the race, Rep. Rod Roberts of Carroll was just forming an exploratory committee. Fong and McKinley tied at 3 percent, Roberts was at 1 percent and Sen. Jerry Behn of Boone was named by less than 1 percent.

The margin does indicate the passion and resolve of his supporters, Vander Plaats said, "and their belief that we'll not only win the primary but the general election, too."

In fact, he thinks winning the primary may be the hard part.

"We have to convince Republicans that a candidate without a typical Republican resume is the best candidate," he said. Vander Plaats is stressing his experience in the education as well as in health care and human services.

"Those are typically Democratic fields," he explained, but if Republicans nominate a candidate who has delivered results in those areas and understands the constraints of the state budget, he may be able to attract votes of educators, health care professionals and Iowans in human services fields.

To see the poll, visit: http://theiowarepublican.com/home/2009/07/15/vander-plaats-sets-the-pace-for-gop-primary-field/