Brian Sandoval, Sharron Angle Lead for GOP Governor, Senate Nods in Nevada

The frontrunners in Nevada's GOP primary races for the gubernatorial and senate nominations are former federal judge Brian Sandoval, who is seeking to oust incumbent Gov. Jim Gibbons, and Tea Party favorite Sharron Angle, who has forged ahead of onetime frontrunner Sue Lowden, according to two new polls.

One of the polls conducted May 31 - June 2 by Daily Kos/Research 2000 shows neither of the Reids running for office this year -- Harry, seeking re-election to the Senate, and son Rory, bidding for governor -- looking particularly strong heading into the general elections in most of the match-ups, with the exception of the gubernatorial race between the younger Reid and the scandal-scarred Gibbons.

In the GOP Senate battle, in its last lap before Tuesday's primary, state Assemblywoman Sharron Angle leads in the Daily Kos/Research 2000 poll and one conducted June 1-2 by Suffolk University. Angle, just endorsed by the conservative Club for Growth, leads former GOP state chairman Sue Lowden 34 percent to 25 percent with 24 percent for businessman and former college basketball star Danny Tarkanian and 17 percent undecided. The margin of error is 4 points.

The Suffolk poll has Angle leading with 32 percent, Tarkanian in second at 25 percent followed by Lowden at 24 percent with 11 percent undecided. The margin of error is 4.9 points.

The Suffolk survey suggests a lot of volatility in the remaining days of the race. Fifty-one percent said they had made up their minds, 32 percent said they would probably change their minds and another 15 percent said they might change. But when voters were asked who they would lean towards if they were standing in the voter's booth right now, 66 percent said they were undecided.

Although Angle has taken the lead in the GOP contest, 33 percent of likely primary voters believe Lowden has better chance of defeating Reid compared to 27 percent for angle, and 23 percent for Tarkanian.

In the GOP governor's race, Sandoval, who was state attorney general before becoming a federal judge, holds a big lead over Gibbons who went through a messy divorce and charges that he made unwanted sexual advances to a cocktail waitress.

In the Daily Kos/Research 2000 poll, Sandoval leads Gibbons by 48 percent to 27 percent with 6 percent for Mike Montandan, the former mayor of North Las Vegas, with 17 percent undecided. The Suffolk survey has Sandoval ahead of Gibbons by 47 percent to 25 percent with 10 percent for Montandon and 16 percent undecided.

Looking ahead to the general election, the Daily Kos/Research 2000 poll gave Harry Reid leads ranging from 4 to 6 points over Lowden, Angle and Tarkanian with the biggest lead being 6 points over Angle. But Reid's support tops out at 43 percent which has been a ceiling for him in nearly all the polls in this election cycle.

In the governor's race, Daily Kos/Research 2000 has Sandoval leading Rory Reid by 51 percent to 41 percent with 5 percent preferring someone else and 3 percent undecided. Reid leads the unpopular Gibbons by 52 percent to 31 percent with 8 percent preferring someone else and 9 percent undecided, which is hardly surprising since 62 percent of voters view Gibbons unfavorably.

But perhaps a real mark of Reid's weakness is that he leads Montandan by 43 percent to 40 percent with 7 percent preferring someone else and 10 percent undecided, even though 38 percent didn't know enough about Montandan to have an opinion of him compared to 8 percent who said that of Reid.

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