New Poll: Brown v Warren Tied in MA Senate Race

Harvard Law professor Elizabeth Warren may find her voice in the Senate should she beat Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown this November. A new poll from the New Hampshire Survey Center says she might.

The poll contacted 544 likely voters in Massachusetts and found that the special advisor to the Dodd-Frank-created Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), is in a statistical tie with the first-term incumbent senator. Brown leads with 37 percent of voters to Warren's 35 percent, with 26 percent undecided.  This is well within the +/- 4.2 percent margin of error for the poll.

Interestingly, Brown leads among independents with 42 percent to Warren's 14 percent. A plurality, 44 percent said Warren would do more to help "working people"; however, more voters see Brown as a strong leader (43 percent to 31 percent), and nearly half say Brown has the most bipartisan appeal, while 27 percent said the same about Warren. This may be reflected by the Obama administration's inability to appoint Warren to the CFPB amid strong criticism from financial institutions and Republicans in Congress. 57 percent of likely voters think Brown is most likable, compared to 23 percent who say so of Warren.

In terms of demographics, young people ages 18-34 are more likely to support Warren with 39 percent to Brown's 26 percent. However, the age cohort right above from 35 to 49 supports Brown 37 percent to Warren's 25 percent. Warren leads among those making less than $60,000 a year, 40 percent to 29 percent, and those with post-graduate degrees 50 percent to 28 percent. Brown leads among those making more than 60,000 a year. Men are about 10 percentage points more likely to vote for Brown, as are women for Warren.

Full poll results can be found here.