Home Politics Business & Economy Lifestyle Current Events About Us Elections | Issues | People Survey of 500 Likely Voters September 13, 2006 Election 2006: Maryland Senate Ben Cardin (D) 50% Michael Steele (R) 43% Sign up for our weekly newsletter, and get updates emailed to you FREE! Advertisment Advertisment Democrat Ben Cardin Maryland Senate: Cardin by 7 Cardin (D) 50% Steele (R) 43% September 19, 2006 Having emerged successfully from the September 12 Democratic primary, Ben Cardin now leads Lt. Gov. Michael Steele 50% to 43% in the race for Maryland’s Senate seat (see crosstabs). Cardin was ahead 47% to 42% over Steele in the last poll leading up to the primary. Maryland remains classified as “leans Democrat” in the Rasmussen Reports Senate Balance of Power summary. Cardin defeated Kweisi Mfume to take his party’s nomination, though it was not with a clear mandate. Only about 18,500 separated the two Democrats and Mfume originally said he would wait for outstanding absentee ballots to be counted before conceding the race. He changed course when it was determined that the outstanding votes would not be enough for him to overtake Cardin and he formally conceded on September 15. Though he trails in the polls, nearly one-third of voters (32%) say they have a “very favorable” opinion of Steele; 29% say the same of Cardin. Fifteen percent (15%) report “very unfavorable” opinions of Steele and 11% feel the same way about Cardin. A plurality of voters sees Cardin as politically liberal (41%) and Steele as a moderate (40%.) Sixteen percent (16%) aren’t sure how to classify either candidate. When asked whom they trust more on matters relating to national security and Iraq, 52% say the Democrats in Congress and 38% say President Bush. The pattern repeats when it comes to the economy; 56% trust Congressional Democrats and 36% trust President Bush. Forty-three percent (43%) believe the U.S. and its allies are winning the war on terror. Crosstabs available for Premium Members only. Rasmussen Reports is an electronic publishing firm specializing in the collection, publication, and distribution of public opinion polling information. The Rasmussen Reports ElectionEdge™ Premium Service for Election 2006 offers the most comprehensive public opinion coverage ever provided for a mid-term election. We update the President's Job Approval Ratings daily and are polling competitive Senate and Governor's races at least once a month in 2006. Rasmussen Reports was the nation's most accurate polling firm during the Presidential election and the only one to project both Bush and Kerry's vote total within half a percentage point of the actual outcome. During Election 2004, RasmussenReports.com was also the top-ranked public opinion research site on the web. We had twice as many visitors as our nearest competitor and nearly as many as all competitors combined. Scott Rasmussen, president of Rasmussen Reports, has been an independent pollster for more than a decade. The telephone survey of 500 Likely Voters was conducted by Rasmussen Reports September 13, RELATED ARTICLES Illinois Governor: Blagojevich by 12 South Carolina Governor: Sanford's Lead Holding Election Poll 2006 TOP STORIES Scott's Page: What's Going on in New Jersey? Madonna World Tour: 41% Say Staged Crucifixion “Offensive” Florida Governor: Crist by 5 Chavez and His UN Remarks Rejected by Most Americans Arizona Senate: Kyl’s Lead Cut to 11 Just 31% Have Favorable Opinion of U.N. Montana Senate: Burns Still Trailing Small Businesses Upbeat on Economy Washington Senate: Bounce for Cantwell Fading Bush Job Approvals: Disapprovals Rule Maine Governor: Baldacci (D) by 5 Advertisment Advertisment Your Email Address Ads by Goooooogle ABC News Polls Page Get the Latest Opinion Polls on a Variety of Topics - Visit ABC News ABCNews.com 2006. The margin of sampling error for the survey is +/- 4.5 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. (see Methodology) ©2006 Rasmussen Reports Inc. Advertise With Us | Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Contact Us Media Interviews & Advertising Sales: 732-776-9777 Advertisment