Kemp Leads Older Voters, Abrams Strong Among Women | New Poll

ATLANTA, GA -- A newly released poll in Georgia's nationally watched governor's race shows Republican Brian Kemp leading among voters 65 and older and Democrat Stacey Abrams holding a 9-point advantage among women voters. The race has attracted international attention as Abrams seeks to become the nation's first African-American female governor and Kemp is aiming to maintain GOP control in a state that Donald Trump won in his 2016 presidential election.

Overall, the WSB/Landmark Communications poll shows Kemp at 48% to Abrams' 46.3%, with more than 3% undecided.

Earlier in the week, an NBC News/Survey Monkey Online poll showed both Abrams and Kemp tied at 43%, with 14% of voters undecided. The poll also showed voters in Southern states are likely to vote Republican in this fall's midterm elections except in Georgia, where 47% said they would vote for the Democratic candidate in Congress and 44% would vote for the GOP candidate.

The poll also showed while a majority of adults in Mississippi, Alabama and Tennessee approve of President Donald Trump's job performance, 54% of Georgians disapprove of the way Trump is handing his job. Only 28% of Southerners approve of the way Congress is handling its job and 70% disapprove. Voters in Georgia, along with Mississippi, Alabama and Tennessee think economy and jobs should be the most important priority.

Trump won 51% of the Georgia vote in 2016.

Early voting begins Oct. 15 in Georgia, but more than 9,000 absentee ballots have already been cast, as the state's governor's race continues to capture national attention. Former president Barack Obama has already endorsed Abrams, but on Monday he announced endorsements of several other candidates, including two first-time female candidates in two metro Atlanta congressional races. Obama endorsed of Lucy McBath in Georgia's 6th congressional seat, and Carolyn Bourdeaux in the 7th congressional district.

More than 9,000 absentee ballots have already been returned by Georgia voters in advance of the Nov. 6 general election, according to data from the Georgia Secretary of State. Early voting begins Oct. 15.

Georgia allows anyone to vote by mail on absentee ballots. The deadline to register to vote for this year's election is Oct. 9.

An internal poll conducted by the Abrams campaign shows her leading Kemp by a margin of 48 percent to Kemp's 42 percent. The firm of Garin-Hart-Yang conducted the poll between Sept. 17-20, interviewing a sample of 603 likely voters with a margin of error of +4.1%. The party self-identification in the survey was 40% Democrat and 40% Republican.

Georgia voters can check their registration status as well as find out where they can vote early through the Georgia Secretary of State's My Voter Page.

Read WSB's new poll results here.

From now until Election Day, your local Patch will be offering the most comprehensive and thorough election coverage of the governor's race and all of the other local races, issues and referendums that matter to you.

More Patch Election Coverage

• Abrams, Kemp Tied In New National Poll Of GA Governor's Race
• Obama Makes Endorsements In Two Big GA Congressional Races
• America's Most Watched Governor's Race: Early Voting Begins Soon
• Dead Heat: Abrams, Kemp Tied In GA Governor Poll
• Federal Judge Rules No Paper Ballots In GA For 2018 Election

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