Charlie Crist Leads, Rick Scott Being Hurt by Adrian Wyllie in New Poll

Former Gov. Charlie Crist has the lead over Gov. Rick Scott in a poll released on Wednesday.

The poll from St. Leo University shows Crist taking 43 percent with Scott within the margin of error at 40 percent. Libertarian Adrian Wyllie garners 8 percent while 9 percent remain undecided. When Wyllie is taken out of the mix, Scott moves up to tie Crist with each candidate taking 45 percent.

It appears as though Charlie Crists attacks against Rick Scott are working, as the race has swung away from the incumbent in the last few months, said Frank Orlando, who teaches political science at Saint Leo University.

Orlando said Wyllies support could drop in the final days of the campaign which could help Scott.

Pre-election polls tend to overstate support for third party candidates, Orlando said. When it comes time to cast their ballots, voters seem to settle on one of the two main parties for fear of wasting their vote. It appears that Wyllie is drawing more support from Scott than Crist, and, if Wyllie is removed from the race, Scott gains 5 percent of the vote, while Crist only gains 2 percent and the poll is a dead heat.

Despite the negative nature of the campaign, voters valuations of candidates havent really changed, Orlando added. This suggests that voters have had their minds made up for a while and that there is a very small group of undecided voters. The election seems certain to hinge on mobilization and the amount that Wyllie can pull voters from Scott.

The poll of 500 likely voters was taken from Oct. 16-Oct. 19 and had a margin of error of +/- 4.5 percent.