Georgia 6th Race: Ossoff Boasts 7-Point Lead Over Handel In High-Stakes Runoff, Poll Shows

EAST COBB, GA — A new poll in Georgia's 6th Congressional District race shows Democrat Jon Ossoff opening a lead over Republican Karen Handel a month before the election. The poll, conducted by SurveyUSA on the behalf of Atlanta TV station WXIA, shows Ossoff in the front 51 percent to 44 percent, the largest projected lead in the race thus far.

The results show that President Donald Trump's recent controversies, including the firing of former FBI Director James Comey and the revelations around former National Security Adviser Mike Flynn, may be souring voters on Republican leadership, the survey posits. The 6th District race is being closely watched by Washington and much of the nation as many see it as a referendum on Trump. (To stay up to date on all developments in the 6th District, click here to sign up for the East Cobb Patch. Or find your Atlanta-area town here. Or, if you have an iPhone, download the free Patch app.)

The poll comes as Handel seeks to stack the deck with high-profile GOP support. Vice President Mike Pence is coming to Atlanta on June 9 to stump for her. The visit follows one by Speaker Paul Ryan on May 15 and Trump on April 28.

Read more: Trump raises $750,000 for Handel in Atlanta

Following a federal judge's order for the state to temporarily reopen voter registration, voter rolls continue to swell in the district, which includes the affluent north Atlanta suburbs of Cobb, DeKalb and Fulton counties. More than 5,500 voters have been added in the last few weeks, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

Ossoff came just short of winning the 6th District House seat in the April 19 special election against 17 other candidates. His 48 percent total was 2 percent shy of the 50 percent he needed to turn the longtime GOP-leaning district into a Democratic one and win the race outright.

The 6th District seat was held by U.S. Rep. Tom Price until he vacated it to join the Trump administration as U.S. Health secretary.

SurveyUSA interviewed 700 registered voters from May 16 through May 20 using registration-based sampling. It has a credibility interval of ± 4.3 points.

Read more: 6th District House Race: New Poll Shows Dead Heat
Read more: Trump Raises $750,000 For Karen Handel In Atlanta Visit
Read more: Dems, GOP Claim Win As Ossoff, Handel Face Runoff
Read more: Georgia 6th District Election Results: Ossoff Drops Under 50 Percent

Image via Patch file photo