Michigan GOP gubernatorial primary candidate Tudor Dixon is surging in polling before the Aug. 2 final vote, potentially a precursor to an endorsement from former President Donald Trump in a key battleground state.
Dixon, who had earned Trump's praise at a Mar-a-Lago fundraiser in February, is now an 11-point favorite over a trio of Republican primary candidates in a statistical tie for second place — within the 3.75-point margin of error — in the latest Mitchell Research & Communications poll released Monday.
The gubernatorial primary poll of likely August GOP voters revealed:
- Dixon: 26%.
- Allendale real estate broker Ryan Kelley: 15%.
- Bloomfield Township businessman Kevin Rinke: 13%.
- Mattawan chiropractor Garrett Soldano: 13%.
- Farmington Hills pastor Ralph Rebandt: 1%.
- Undecided: 33%.
"Tudor Dixon has moved into a double-digit 11% lead over her closest competitors because of strong support from voters in the Detroit DMA (TV media market) where she is getting 35% of the vote, from absentee voters who have already voted (39%), voters who plan to vote by absentee ballot (29%), men (32%), and voters who are 65 years and older (31%)," Mitchell Research President Steve Mitchell said. "While her opponents have stayed in almost the same position as they were 2½ weeks ago, Dixon has taken off."
Recent endorsements have helped Dixon surge, including the family of Betsy DeVos, who served as secretary of education under Trump. But Trump's endorsement in the race still remains uncommitted.
"Dixon's campaign has gained real momentum with the endorsements of the DeVos family from Grand Rapids as well as endorsements by Right-to-Life PAC of Michigan, the Michigan Chamber of Commerce, Associated Building & Contractors (ABC), U.S. Reps. Bill Huizenga and Lisa McClain, Michigan Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey, former Gov. John Engler, former Lt. Gov. Dick Posthumus, and 20 Michigan legislators from around the state," Mitchell added.
"She is clearly now on the path to victory in the GOP primary. If she wins, Dixon will have to take a very tough opponent in Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer."
There has been rumors a Trump endorsement would come for Dixon, and the former president has in recent months waited to announce primary endorsements in the closing days of voting before the Tuesday final primary votes. The primary ends Aug. 2, which is the next date 2022 midterm primaries pick back up after taking off the month of July.
"We have somebody very special in Tudor," Trump said in a February video. "She's in there working very, very hard."
Trump hailed Dixon's work with her father's steel foundry in Muskegon.
The Mitchell Research & Communications poll was commissioned by MIRS, a Lansing-based capital news service, among 683 likely August GOP primary voters July 7-8. It has margin of error of plus or minus 3.75 percentage points.
Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
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