The race for the Blaine House is growing tighter, according to a new statewide poll.
Republican nominee Paul LePage and Democrat Libby Mitchell are now separated by only 3 percent of support among likely voters, pollster Rasmussen Reports announced Wednesday.
LePage is at 35 percent and Mitchell is at 32 percent, the New Jersey-based company said. Independent candidate Eliot Cutler has surged to 21 percent, five points higher than his previous high.
The pollster conducted its telephone survey on Tuesday, interviewing 500 people who identified themselves as likely voters.
The numbers seemed to agree with a survey commissioned by Maine Today Media. That poll, conducted over the previous two days involving 605 likely voters, also showed a tightening race between the two major party candidates and growing support for Cutler.
However, the Maine Today poll showed LePage with 32 percent of the vote, Mitchell with 26 percent and Cutler with 11 percent.
Numbers from the Rasmussen poll portray shifting attitudes toward candidates.
In September, the majority of likely voters polled had a favorable opinion of LePage. Those opinions have fallen from 58 percent to 42 percent.
Opinion numbers for Mitchell and Cutler have gone largely unchanged.
“Most voters (58 percent) who say the economy is worsening back LePage, while 51 percent of those who say it’s getting better support Mitchell,” Rasmussen said in its newest report.
“In Maine, 9 percent give the U.S. economy good or excellent ratings, while 54 percent rate it as poor. Thirty-two percent say economic conditions in the country are getting better, but 42 percent say they are getting worse,” the report said.
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