Senator Ashley Judd?

A new poll shows that the actress trails Mitch McConnell by just 4 points in a hypothetical Senate race

Published December 11, 2012 9:15PM (EST)

Ashley Judd     (AP/David J. Phillip)
Ashley Judd (AP/David J. Phillip)

A new poll from PPP shows that in a hypothetical matchup between actress Ashley Judd and Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., Judd is only behind by 4 points.

Judd, who says she is considering a run in 2014, is trailing 47-43 percent behind McConnell, who happens to be the most unpopular senator in the country.

From PPP:

Only 37% of Kentucky voters approve of him to 55% disapprove. Both in terms of raw disapproval (55%) and net approval (-18) McConnell has the worst numbers of any of his peers, taking that mantle from Nebraska's Ben Nelson.

McConnell is predictably very unpopular with Democrats (23/73). But his numbers are almost as bad with independents (33/58) and even with Republicans he's well below the 70-80% approval range you would usually expect for a Senator within their own party (59/28).

Among Democrats, Judd is the top choice for the primary, with 29 percent of the vote, compared to Lt. Gov. Jerry  Abramson who came in second at 16 percent.

PPP surveyed 1,266 Kentucky voters for the survey overall, and 585 Democratic primary voters.


By Jillian Rayfield

Jillian Rayfield is an Assistant News Editor for Salon, focusing on politics. Follow her on Twitter at @jillrayfield or email her at jrayfield@salon.com.

MORE FROM Jillian Rayfield


Related Topics ------------------------------------------

2014 Elections Ashley Judd Editor's Pick Kentucky Mitch Mcconnell Polling U.s. Senate