Poll: Republicans have early lead over Dems in ’13 state races

Republicans Bill Bolling and Ken Cuccinelli both have early leads over potential Democratic gubernatorial challengers Terry McAuliffe and Tom Perriello.

Public Policy Polling has Bolling, the sitting lieutenant governor, leading McAuliffe by a 38 percent-to-33 percent margin and leading Perriello, the former Fifth District congressman, 39 percent to 32 percent. Cuccinelli, the sitting attorney general, leads McAuliffe 41 percent to 38 percent and Perriello 41 percent to 36 percent.

That the race on both sides is still very, very wide open is evident in the large numbers of voters who have no opinion one way or the other on any of the four. Sixty-six percent don’t know enough about Bolling, now in his second term as lieutenant governor, to have an opinion of him, while 64 percent have no opnion of Perriello, 59 percent say the same for McAuliffe and 35 percent say that for Cuccinelli.