U. S. House poll released

The new Loras College Poll of the first and third congressional districts in Iowa finds the Republican incumbents, Rod Blum, 1st District, and David Young, 3rd District, with an early advantage over their Democratic challengers. The live-caller survey was conducted between Sept. 20-22, including both landline and cell phones, with 368 likely voters in 1st District and 327 in 3rd District.

“Even in this remarkable and unique election year, it appears that incumbency remains an important advantage-including for first term incumbents like Blum and Young,” said Christopher Budzisz, Ph.D., associate professor of politics and director of the Loras College Poll. “It’s still early in these congressional contests, however, as most voter time and attention remains focused on the race for the White House. We also find large numbers of undecided in both of these closely-watched Congressional races. The next six weeks will be very interesting here in Iowa as the battle for Congress concludes.”

Both the 1st and 3rd district races have been identified by analysts as among the most competitive in the country.

Candidate preferences

1st District Congressional

Rod Blum 45 percent

Monica Vernon 38 percent

Unsure 16 percent

David Young 46 percent

Jim Mowrer 36 percent Unsure 15

(Percentages may not add to 100% due to rounding and “other”/non-responses.)