With less than a month before the November election, Democrat Lee Fisher has some catching up to do. A poll released from Quinnipiac University Fisher is nineteen percentage points behind Republican opponent Rob Portman in the race for Ohio's open Senate seat. But during an appearance on the All Sides with Ann Fisher program, Lee Fisher dismissed the deficit.
"I've won plenty of races when I was down in the polls. And I just want to make sure that people know the difference between me and Rob Portman. I'm hoping that people will know that difference and will decide that no matter what the polls show I'm the candidate who will represent them in the U.S. Senate," Fisher says.
Rob Portman's campaign spokesman Jeff Sadosky says Portman's lead is the result of voter frustration for the number of Ohio jobs lost. He says the Strickland administration's policies caused 400,000 people to be out of work.
"Jobs, far and away, number one issue in this race. There is no one who has not been affected by our job losses and our economic circumstances," Sadosky says.
Meanwhile Fisher says Portman supported U.S. trade policies that shipped Ohio jobs to China.
"If you want to find the jobs that Congressman Rob Portman created, you're going to have to go to Shang Hai, Bejing, or Hong Kong," Fisher says.
More than 1,000 voters were surveyed for the Quinnipiac poll. The study also indicated that the majority of those surveyed want Republicans to take control of the Senate. The GOP needs 10 seats to do that.
Jen Monroe, WOSU News.