Rick Scott Edges Charlie Crist in New Poll

A poll from the Florida Chamber Political Institute (FCPI) unveiled on Monday shows Gov. Rick Scott has taken the lead over former Gov. Charlie Crist. Despite having spent most of his political life as a Republican, Crist is the favorite to win the Democratic primary next week.

Scott takes 44 percent in the poll of likely voters while Crist garners 41 percent. Scotts lead expands when Libertarian Adrian Wyllie is added into the mix. In that scenario, Scott takes 41 percent, Crist gets 35 percent and Wyllie takes 4 percent.

While top concerns for voters remain jobs and the economy, their support of Gov. Scott is a signal they approve of his strong ability to create private-sector jobs, said Marian Johnson, the senior vice president of the Florida Chamber Political Institute. This is evidenced by the fact that 43 percent of the voters believe Floridas unemployment rate is lower since Rick Scott took office.

I believe a major reason Charlie Crist is visibly losing support is because voters are beginning to realize that Rick Scotts private-sector, pro-jobs plan is working and that Florida continues to move in the right direction, said Mark Wilson, the president and CEO of the Florida Chamber.

The poll of 627 likely voters was taken from Aug. 10-13 by Cherry Communications and had a margin of error of +/-4 percent.