Crunch time is still months away, but Illinois Senate candidate Mark Kirk ’81 has lost some ground to his opponent Alexi Giannoulias in the most recent Rasmussen poll. The 3 point lead that Kirk (R) held in June has since turned into a 1 point deficit. More from Rasmussen:
This marks the first time since March, however, that the Democrat has risen out of the 30s. His support against Kirk since February has ranged from 37% to 44%.
Kirk, a member of Congress since 2001, has apologized in recent weeks for false claims on his military record. Giannoulias, meanwhile, remains under fire for his ties to the family-owned Broadway Bank, which failed and was seized by federal regulators in April of this year.
Both men are battling for the seat once held by Barack Obama and now filled by Roland Burris, appointed by since-impeached Democratic Governor Rod Blagojevich after Obama’s election as president. Blagojevich is currently being tried in Chicago on federal corruption charges that include trying to sell the Senate seat to the highest bidder.
Kirk now appears to be facing an uphill battle to win this important Democratic seat.
