WHAT’S UP, DOC?

Polls taken by different firms for the upcoming Michigan 11th District – the one where Democratic Reps. Haley Stevens and Andy Levin have declared themselves adversaries – show it’s all up to who is asking the questions and interpreting the results. Impact Research conducted a poll for Stevens’ campaign where Stevens currently leads Levin, 42 percent to 35 percent – with a whopping 23 percent still undecided. A poll done by Target Insyght, first reported by Deadline Detroit, has the pair of two-term members of Congress tied at 41 percent, with 18 percent undecided. That leaves a lot of room for either candidate to pull primary voters to their side – and a lot of time before the August 2 primary for mud to get thrown. Stevens’ poll shows her as leading with critical demographics, such as Black voters (+14) and women, with a 10-point lead; moderates, a 12-point lead, and even liberals by nine points. In households with an auto worker, Stevens, who has made auto and manufacturing her hallmark, leads Levin by 20 points. In the Target Insyght poll, Levin leads Stevens among women by 17 points, with 25 percent undecided; he leads with Black voters by 14 points, with 29 percent undecided, and among voters over 61 by a nine-point margin, with 15 percent undecided. Levin also leads among union members. Stevens leads among White voters by two points with 12 percent undecided, and males by 21 points, with nine percent undecided. As one Democratic staffer said, “Some people will like that she’s more moderate, some will like that he’s more progressive.”