A new poll gives Gov. Brian Kemp an 11-point lead over his Republican rival, former U.S. Sen. David Perdue.
In the new Fox News poll of Georgia Republican primary voters released Tuesday, Kemp received 50 percent, while Perdue, who has the backing of former President Donald Trump, got 39 percent. Ten percent are unsure or would vote for someone else.
The poll broke down support for the former president among primary voters. Nearly eight in 10 view Trump favorably, with 57 percent having a strongly favorable opinion. Nineteen percent view Trump negatively.
Trump's endorsement does appear to be working among those who strongly support him. Among those voters, Perdue has 52 percent to Kemp's 39 percent. But among voters with an unfavorable opinion of Trump, Kemp is a big winner, 70 percent to 15 percent.
The picture in the Republican primary for U.S. Senator is clearer: Herschel Walker, 1982 Heisman trophy-winning running back from the University of Georgia, is far ahead of his opponents with 66 percent. Agriculture Commissioner Gary Black comes in a distant second at 8 percent, and all other candidates receiving 6 percent combined. Sixteen percent haven't made up their minds.
Republican voters are interested in this election. More than 80 percent are either extremely (54 percent) or very (28 percent) interested. Those who are extremely interested support Perdue by 7 points.
The poll also asked voters what issues they felt were important: economic issues (93 percent extremely or very important), immigration issues (86 percent), social issues (75 percent), and in a distant last place are COVID-19 policies (54 percent).
Interest in the election is high: Over 8 in 10 GOP primary voters are "extremely" (54%) or "very" (28%) interested. Extremely interested voters break for Perdue by 7 points (49% Perdue-42% Kemp).
The poll was conducted March 2-6, under the joint direction of Beacon Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R). The poll includes telephone interviews (landline and cellphone) with live interviewers among 914 Georgia Republican primary voters and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus three percentage points.
