Another Poll Shows Quinn Trailing Lisa Madigan; Sheila Simon Will Not Seek Re-Election
By Chuck Sudo in News on Feb 13, 2013 10:30PM
The poll numbers continue to speak doom for Gov. Pat Quinn with the gubernatorial primaries a year away. A new poll conducted by the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute showed voters favored Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan over Quinn in a head-to-head matchup.
Madigan earned 31.9 percent of votes in the survey to Quinn’s 22.9 percent. Former Commerce Secretary and White House chief of staff Bill Daley came in third at 11.9 percent. The poll also showed Illinois Treasurer Dan Rutherford with a narrow lead over state Sen. Bill Brady for the GOP gubernatorial nomination.
If Quinn can take any solace in these numbers besides the primary being months away, the Simon poll numbers are closer than one conducted last November by Public Policy Polling that indicated Madigan would have a 64-20 lead over Quinn. Madigan hasn’t publicly announced her intentions to run for governor yet, but she seems to be testing the waters to see who would support her if she does choose to run and political insiders said she wouldn’t shy away from a fight against Quinn or Daley.
If Quinn does somehow win the Democratic nomination next year, he’ll be running with a new nominee for Lieutenant Governor. Current Illinois Lt. Gov. Sheila Simon announced she would not be seeking re-election next year. The former law school professor has held the office since 2010 and experts believe she plans to seek another statewide office, possibly an Attorney General run if Madigan throws her hat in the governor’s race. The move would also allow Simon to raise campaign money for Quinn.