Michigan’s Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer continues to lead Republican candidate Tudor Dixon in the polls, but a new survey shows Dixon within striking distance.
A poll released Friday by the Trafalgar Group shows Whitmer leading by six points (51% – 45%), indicating a much closer race than the previous polls from the Detroit News and Detroit Free Press showed. According to a Detroit News poll from the end of August through early September, Whitmer led Dixon by 13 points, while the Free Press had the governor ahead by 16 at the middle of last month.
“Even Gretchen’s millions in attack ads can’t erase her record of broken promises,” Dixon tweeted in response to the Trafalgar poll findings. “We will defeat the Queen of Lockdowns.”
New @trafalgar_group #MIGov #Poll (9/24-28) shows incumbent #Whitmer holding lead #mipol
50.9% @gretchenwhitmer
45.1% @TudorDixon
2.6% @LPMary4Gov
0.7% Other
0.8% Und
See Report: https://t.co/VCro75m3Ui pic.twitter.com/doSsy8ccci
— The Trafalgar Group (@trafalgar_group) September 30, 2022
The Trafalgar poll was revealed a day after a report from Bridge Michigan showed that the state has lost nearly 82,000 jobs under Whitmer’s watch as the governor continues to tout her economic “achievements.” Whitmer has also repeatedly bragged about creating 25,000 auto jobs in the state, but those jobs don’t seem to exist.
Dixon blames Whitmer’s harsh COVID lockdown policies for Michigan’s sluggish economy.
“Gretchen Whitmer implemented the most draconian and extreme lockdowns in the country throughout the pandemic,” Dixon told Bridge Michigan.
“She destroyed our small business community … and forced hard working Michiganders to follow her intrusive orders that picked winners and losers. That is her economic legacy,” the GOP candidate added.
Trafalgar, one of the most-trusted survey companies in the country, has proven its accuracy in Michigan in the past. The company was one of the only pollsters that correctly predicted former President Donald Trump’s victory in the state in 2016.
The latest poll of 1,075 Michiganders conducted between September 24 – 28 also showed Democrats leading in the two other statewide races. Democratic Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson leads GOP candidate Kristina Karamo 50% to 45%, while Democratic Attorney General Dana Nessel is ahead of Republican attorney Matthew DePerno 48% to 45%.
Dixon is set to hold a rally with Trump in Warren, Michigan, Saturday night. The former president endorsed Dixon days prior to her massive primary victory in early August. Since her victory, Dixon has come out with multiple conservative plans, from a Florida-like ban on public schools teaching sexual orientation and gender identity to K-3rd grade students to giving the police $1 billion in additional funding.
