Veteran GOP pollster Frank Luntz says there is much more than a political lane available for former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (I) to join the presidential race as an independent candidate.
Luntz's reasoning came from a nationwide poll of 900 likely voters conducted by his firm, Luntz Global Partners.
The survey found that 29% of Americans would support Bloomberg in a theoretical three-way race between the former mayor, GOP front-runner Donald Trump, and Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton. Trump would receive 37% of the vote, while Clinton would emerge with 33%.
In a three-way race with Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Clinton, Bloomberg would receive 28% of the vote. Clinton, meanwhile, would come out on top with 37% while Cruz would take 34%.
Bloomberg would pick up more than 40% of independent voters in the poll — no matter if Rubio, Trump, or Cruz is the Republican in the race. Among Trump, Cruz, Rubio, and Clinton, none would garner more than 35% of the independent vote when Bloomberg is inserted into the race.
The numbers painted a significantly better potential picture for Bloomberg than a recent Morning Consult survey. The survey also put Trump's support at 37% and Clinton's at 36% in such a scenario, but found that a Bloomberg entry would hurt Clinton more than Trump.
Rumblings about a potential Bloomberg bid have grown louder after The New York Times reported on Saturday that billionaire former mayor asked those close to come up with a campaign plan for an independent presidential bid. The 73-year-old Bloomberg has reportedly said that he'd be willing to spend $1 billion of his fortune to run for the White House, according to The Times. He will reportedly make his decision by early March.
businessinsider.com
