Lamont Leads Lieberman by 13 Points in New Poll

The Lieberman campaign, fearing that low voter turnout in the primary would favor Lamont, had plans to build a get-out-the-vote operation bigger than any seen in a state race in Connecticut. But in the face of discouraging polls, campaign officials concluded this week that the money likely would be wasted.

Lieberman plans to spend the remaining days of the campaign making a positive case for himself through television ads and a series of media interviews, according to campaign officials. He has decided not to attempt to discuss the war in his final commercials.

Lieberman began a bus tour of the state late last week, but there has been little sign of a resurgence as he has campaigned in diners, senior citizen centers, retail outlets and construction sites. Lieberman has implored Democrats to nominate him for a fourth term because of the work he said he has done to save jobs and bring money to the state. But opposition to the war and seeming indifference to Lieberman among many rank-and-file Democrats has overwhelmed those efforts.

With five days remaining in the campaign, the Quinnipiac poll painted a gloomy picture for Lieberman and his team. Lamont "has begun to broaden his base," said Douglas Schwartz, director of the Quinnipiac poll. "He's increased his support among moderates and those with less than a college education."

Lamont led among virtually every category of voter, except those with incomes below $30,000 and those who consider themselves moderates. Lieberman held narrow leads -- within the poll's margin of error -- in those categories.

Lamont held a commanding lead among college-educated Democrats (57 percent to 39 percent) and gained the advantage among those without a college degree (51 percent to 43 percent). Lieberman had hoped to rally support among blue-collar and working-class Democrats, but the poll suggests that Lamont has broken through among those voters as well. Among self-identified liberals, Lamont leads 66 percent to 31 percent.

Lamont has built his lead almost entirely on dissatisfaction with Lieberman, according to the poll. Among Lamont supporters, 44 percent said Lieberman's support for the war was the main reason they were backing the challenger, and another 50 percent said it was one of the reasons. Almost two in three Democrats backing Lamont said their support was more a vote against Lieberman than a vote for Lamont.

The Quinnipiac poll surveyed 890 likely Democratic voters July 25 to 31. The margin of sampling error is plus or minus 3.3 percentage points.