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Interested Parties Danny Franklin Rhode Islands 1st Congressional District Polling Results September 18, 2012

David Cicilline currently holds a strong, 46-35 lead over Republican Brendan Doherty among likely voters in Rhode Islands First Congressional District. Independent candidate David Vogel pulls 8% and 11% are undecided. Cicillines strong position is in line with the districts solid preference for Democrats. When asked their preference for Congress, 53% said they would choose a Democrat, while only 39% say they would prefer a Republican. This preference has the potential to lead to further gains for Cicilline. Among voters currently undecided in the head-to-head horserace, 45% say they would prefer a Democrat and 18% say they would prefer a Republican. Moreover, 48% are favorable to Democrats in Congress, while only 22% are favorable to Republicans in Congress. President Obama is extremely well liked in the district and voters are lining up behind him. President Obama is viewed favorably by 58% of voters here He holds a 61%-31% lead over Mitt Romney In the Senate race, Sheldon Whitehouse holds an even larger margin over Barry Hinckley. Whitehouse 64% - Hinckley 27% At the same time, voters express significant negativity toward Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan, in addition to Republicans on the Hill. 52% of voters are unfavorable toward Mitt Romney; 29% are favorable 39% of voters are unfavorable toward Paul Ryan; 28% are favorable The strength of these top of ticket Democrats gives Cicilline natural room for expansion as voters begin to tune in to this race. The negativity toward top Republicans and the four-to-one Democratic registration advantage leaves Doherty with no natural constituency with whom to expand his vote.

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 The districts Democratic leanings present a formidable obstacle to Cicillines Republican challenger, particularly in an environment where the presidential election can be expected to dominate political coverage.

The Benenson Strategy Group conducted 400 telephone interviews in the 1st Congressional District of Rhode Island from September 13, 2012 through September 16, 2012. All respondents were registered voters in the district who are likely to vote in this years general election. The margin of error for the entire sample is 4.9% at the 95% confidence level.

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