Libertarian Adrian Wyllie Makes a Major Splash in New Q-Poll

Submitted by Kevin Derby on July 23, 2014 - 7:53am

A poll from Quinnipiac University released Wednesday shows a close race in the Florida gubernatorial contest with the Libertarian candidate proving to be a major factor.

The poll shows former Gov. Charlie Crist, the favorite to win the Democratic primary next month despite spending most of his political life as a Republican, leading with 39 percent with Gov. Rick Scott right behind him with 37 percent. Libertarian Adrian Wyllie takes 9 percent.

When Wyllie is left out of the poll, Crists lead increases. In that scenario Crist takes 45 percent while Scott garners 40 percent.

In both cases, Crists list has dwindled from a Quinnipiac poll taken at the end of April which found him beating Scott 48 percent to 38 percent.

"The campaign to be Florida's next governor tightens slightly and takes on a new dimension with a third candidate in the running," said Peter Brown, the assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Poll, on Wednesday. "Libertarian Adrian Wyllie is not, at this point, a serious contender to win the governorship. But he may have a great deal to say about who does win."

When former Florida Senate Democratic Leader Nan Rich replaces Crist in the poll, Scott leads 41 percent to to 34 percent.

The poll finds the two leading candidates are upside down. While 43 percent of voters view Scott favorably, 48 percent see him as unfavorable. Only 40 percent of those surveyed approve of Scotts performance in Tallahassee while 45 percent disapprove of it. While 40 percent see Crist in a favorable light, 42 percent view him as unfavorable. Wyllie is largely unknown, with 92 percent of those surveyed saying they dont know enough about him to have an opinion.

"Virtually no one knows much about Wyllie, but there are a lot of Floridians who aren't keen on either of the major party candidates, Gov. Rick Scott or former Gov. Charlie Christ," Brown said.

The poll of 1,251 registered Florida voters was taken from July 17-21 and had a margin of error of +/- 2.8 percent.

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