Republicans are divided as to who they want to replace U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., in the U.S. Senate, a new poll shows.
With Rubio running for the presidency and not expected to seek a second term in the Senate come 2016, Mason-Dixon unveiled a new poll on Tuesday which shows almost half of Republicans -- 48 percent -- are undecided in who they want as their candidate to take his spot.
Former Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum takes 20 percent of Florida Republicans while U.S. Rep. David Jolly, R-Fla., takes second with 8 percent followed by U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Fla., with 7 percent.
U.S. Rep. Tom Rooney, R-Fla., who announced on Monday that he will not run for the Senate, pulls 5 percent in the poll. U.S. Rep. Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., and Lt. Gov. Carlos Lopez-Cantera are knotted together with 4 percent apiece followed by former U.S. Sen. George LeMieux, R-Fla., with 3 percent and former Florida Senate President Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, with 1 percent.
U.S. Rep. Jeff Miller, R-Fla., who said on Monday he was looking at running for the Senate, was not included in the poll.
The poll shows most of these potential candidates, even those who have held statewide office, remain largely unknown.
Having been in Florida politics for almost four decades and made two bids for the Senate in addition to running for governor, McCollum is the best known potential candidate in the mix with only a quarter of Republicans -- 25 percent -- unfamiliar with him. But 39 percent recognize McCollum and are neutral about him while 29 percent see him as favorable and 7 percent view him as unfavorable.
Two-thirds of those surveyed -- 67 percent -- dont recognize Buchanan while 19 percent are neutral over him. Only 3 percent view Buchanan as unfavorable while 11 percent see him as favorable.
Despite having been Gov. Rick Scotts running mate last year, 73 percent of Florida Republicans dont recognize Lopez-Cantera and 18 percent are neutral about him. While only 1 percent see him as unfavorable, 8 percent view the lieutenant governor in a favorable light.
Jolly is also largely unknown with 74 percent of Republicans not recognizing him. The congressman is seen as favorable by 10 percent, unfavorable by 3 percent and 13 percent are neutral about him.
While he might have represented Florida in the Senate for more than a year, 75 percent of Florida Republicans dont recognize LeMieux. Only 2 percent see him as unfavorable while 7 percent view him in a favorable light and 16 percent are neutral.
DeSantis is also largely unknown with 79 percent of Florida Republicans not recognizing him. While 11 percent are neutral about him, 9 percent see DeSantis as favorable and 1 percent view him as unfavorable.
Gaetz is the most unknown candidate in the poll with 81 percent of Republicans not recognizing him while 13 percent are neutral about him. The former state Senate president is seen as favorable by 5 percent and unfavorable by 1 percent.
J. Brad Coker, the managing director of Mason-Dixon, was in no rush to appoint a favorite on the Republican side on Tuesday. Coke cautioned about crowning McCollum as the front-runner noting he is better known but does draw overwhelming support.
Despite a 40 percent name recognition advantage over his closest opponent, Bill McCollum draws just 20 percent backing as the leader of the current potential GOP field, Coker added.
The poll of 400 Florida Republicans was taken from April 14-16 and had a margin of error of +/- 5 percent.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN
