WASHINGTON D.C. – With 12 days left until the election, a poll conducted by Cygnal, a national survey research and polling firm, shows Nebraska Senator Ben Sasse up 30 points in his reelection bid.
“As an incumbent, Sasse has a name recognition advantage with a hard name ID of 87%, compared to Janicek’s 44%,” said Brent Buchanan, Cygnal’s CEO and founder. “Though Janicek may want to keep his name ID down since he’s best known for a scandal—that’s more than likely a major reason his image is underwater at -16 net favorability.”
The Cygnal survey, conducted October 19 – 21, with 625 likely general election voters, shows Sasse leading Janicek 48% to 18%, with 6% of voters supporting the Libertarian candidate and 29% still undecided. Cygnal conducted the poll in partnership with the Ready Education Network, a national coalition focused on improving education.
Sasse leads by 25 points with women, 37 points with men, and he’s ahead with every age bracket and income level. Sasse is even winning 17% of Democratic voters, while Janicek is winning 36%, and 41% are undecided.
The poll also tested Governor Ricketts’ image. Ricketts has a net favorability of +15 and a net favorable image with most voter groups. His net fav is +10 with women, +22 with men, +27 with voters age 50 and older, and above water with every income bracket.
“The Governor isn’t on the ballot this year, but if he were he’d be in great shape” said Chris Kratzer, Vice President of Research and Analysis at Cygnal. “With a net favorability of +15, he’d be tough to beat.”
When it comes to COVID-19, 9% more Nebraska voters are more concerned about its public health impact (51%) than the economic fallout (42%).
With many of the nation’s public schools opting to not hold in-classroom instruction, 49% of Nebraskans support allowing parents to control a portion of the tax dollars that are designated for their children’s education if their school is closed for in-person learning. Only 26% oppose the idea.
“There is overwhelming public support for giving parents access to the tax dollars dedicated to their children’s education when schools are closed,” said Luke Ragland, President of Ready Education Network. “Policymakers must find ways to make sure all families can get critical resources in these challenging times. Our education system needs to serve every child, no matter where they are learning.”
This advanced mixed-mode survey was conducted on October 19 – 21, with 625 likely general election voters, giving the poll a margin of error of ±3.92%. Interviews were conducted using live agents calling cell phones and landlines, an online sample acquired via SMS and email invitations sent to known registered voters.
Cygnal is not working with any candidate or independent expenditure in the Nebraska U.S. Senate race.
The toplines can be found below. You can download the xtabs for this survey here.