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The gap that had narrowed between gubernatorial candidates Dan Malloy and Tom Foley is now expanding. That's good news for Malloy, a former Stamford mayor and Democrat, who now leads Foley, a Republican, by 7 percentage points in the latest Quinnipiac University Poll, released Friday.
In a survey of likely voters, 49 percent said they would vote for Malloy; 42 percent said they would cast their ballot for Foley. While the number of voters favoring Foley has held steady since the last Quinnipiac poll released Sept. 29, Malloy is up in this latest poll by 3 percentage points. The previous poll showed Malloy with 45 percent to Foley's 42 percent. A margin of error of 3 percentage points for that survey put the contenders in a virtual dead heat.
The margin of error for this latest poll is 2.9 percent, which still allows Malloy to maintain his lead.
"Democrat Dan Malloy has moved ahead slightly and given himself some breathing room," Quinnipiac poll Director Douglas Schwartz said in a statement. He added, however, that "there are a lot of undecided voters and voters who could change their mind and there are almost three weeks for them to decide."
Schwartz said a substantial proportion of those surveyed are not firm in their choice. About 7 percent say they are undecided, and 20 percent of those naming a preferred candidate said they could change their minds by Election Day.
Malloy held a 9 percentage point lead in a Sept. 15 Quinnipiac poll.
The latest poll results are based on a survey of 1,119 Connecticut residents conducted from Oct. 7 to 11.
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