A new poll of likely Georgia voters shows Johnny Isakson with his most commanding lead yet over Democrat Jim Barksdale as he looks to secure a third term in the Senate this fall.
A Quinnipiac University poll released Friday reports the Republican incumbent is leading Barksdale by 21 percentage points among likely voters, 55 percent to 34 percent. By our count that's his biggest lead yet in the Senate race, which at one point this summer was within single digits as Hillary Clinton's popularity (temporarily) surged in Georgia.
Quinnipiac estimates that Isakson's candidacy is being buoyed by men, who broke for the Republican two-to-one, white voters and independents.
Also notable is that this is one of a string of recent polls where Isakson is coming in above the 50 percent support mark. That's critical if he wants to avoid a taxing runoff that would stretch the race into January.
With less than 50 days to go until Election Day, Isakson has rolled out two ads seeking to sell an image as a bipartisan workhorse, and he's largely managed to avoid any Democratic efforts to tie him to Donald Trump.
Barksdale's campaign, hitting its stride after a slow and sometimes rocky start, has worked to ding Isakson on his Capitol Hill track record, including his stance on trade deals and judicial nominees. He faces a rapidly shrinking timeline as he looks to continue introducing himself to voters as Donald Trump's lead grows in Georgia polls.
Libertarian Allen Buckley is also in the race.
