SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — If the July 28 Republican election for governor were held today, Gov. Larry Rhoden would win by a resounding margin, according to the latest KELOLAND/Emerson College Poll.
The poll shows 62% of likely Republican voter would choose Rhoden, while 32% would choose Aberdeen businessman Toby Doeden. There are 7% of Republican voters still undecided. The poll has a margin of error of 4.3%.
The winner of the July 28 Republican runoff will face Democrat candidate Dan Ahlers in November.
Rhoden gained a significant amount of voters who had selected U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson in the June 2 primary. The poll shows that 95% of those who voted for Johnson in the primary indicated that they would vote for Rhoden. Only 5% indicated Doeden.
State Rep. Jon Hansen voters chose Rhoden over Doeden 69% to 31%, respectively.
If undecided voters are included the margin is 65% for Rhoden and 35% for Doeden.
500 Republican voters sampled
Rhoden received 25% of the primary vote while Doeden got 31%. They advanced to the July 28 runoff. Johnson had 23% of the June 2 vote while Hansen had 21%. Since no candidate reached 35% but Rhoden and Doeden were the top two, they advanced to the July 28 runoff.
A significant point in the latest poll is that only 1% of the respondents did not vote in the June 2 primary.
This latest poll, conducted by Emerson College, is a big switch in likely voter attitudes for candidates when compared to the two prior KELOLAND polls.
In March, U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson was the first choice among likely voters while Doeden was in second. In May, Doeden was the first choice, followed by Johnson. Rhoden was third in both polls.
