U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson continues to edge out Gov. Rick Scott in a hypothetical 2018 matchup, according to the latest poll from the Florida Chamber of Commerce.
According to the survey, released Monday afternoon, Nelson holds a six point lead over Scott for the U.S. Senate seat, routing the governor 48 percent to 42 percent.
Democrats, unsurprisingly, are mostly all in for Nelson. As Nelson looks to nail down his fourth Senate term, he took three-quarters of the base vote --75 percent -- while Scott only took 11 percent with Dems.
Scott also enjoys a high level of support among his core voting bloc -- the governor took 75 percent of the Republican vote, while Nelson took 18 percent.
Independent voters are, however, a closer tossup for the two candidates, with Nelson leading by 44 percent to Scott’s 38 percent.
Though the governor may be behind in a campaign matchup, Scott's approval rating is slightly higher than Nelson's. Fifty percent approve of the job he's doing as governor as opposed to the 7 percent who approve of Nelson's job as senator.
The poll is just the latest to suggest Nelson would lead Scott in a hypothetical matchup for his seat next year.
Two weeks ago, a Mason-Dixon poll found Nelson beating Scott by five points, 46-41 percent. Another poll from the University of North Florida (UNF) placed Nelson ahead 44 percent to 38 percent earlier this month.
Scott is widely rumored to be seeking a bid at the U.S. Senate, but has yet to officially declare whether he’ll run for Nelson’s seat.
In just seven years, the governor has risen to become one of the strongest figures among Florida Republicans. Once a political unknown, he harnessed his business career and springboarded his fortune into politics.
He has won two consecutive terms as Florida governor, running against some of the biggest names in Florida politics, former Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink and former Gov. and current U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist.
Scott was recently named as Vice Chair of the Republican Governors Association, which he will chair next year.
The governor has marketed his term as governor with a heavy jobs focus, traveling the state to promise jobs to Floridians to get them back to work.
Some have criticized Nelson for maintaining a low profile moving into 2018, but all polls suggest he’s still ahead of Scott, at least for now.
The survey of 600 likely voters was conducted by Cherry Communications from March 6 through March 14.
Reach reporter Allison Nielsen by email at allison@sunshinestatenews.com or follow her on Twitter: @AllisonNielsen.
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