New Poll Finds Steve Garvey Topping Adam Schiff, Dem Field In California’s Open Senate Primary

Republican candidate and former professional baseball player Steve Garvey inched out ahead of Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff and other left-wing House members in a new poll for California’s open Senate primary.

Garvey received 27% support compared to Schiff’s 25% among likely California voters, followed by Democratic Reps. Katie Porter and Barbara Lee at 19% and 8%, respectively, according to a UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies/Los Angeles Times poll released Friday. The survey found the Republican rising by 14 points since January, while Schiff increased his standing by four points, Porter jumped by two points and Lee fell by one point.

The candidates are vying for the late Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s old seat, which is temporarily occupied by the former president of the pro-abortion group EMILYs List, Laphonza Butler.

The poll indicates that Garvey and Schiff would advance to the general election as the top-two vote-getters in Tuesday’s Senate primary, boxing out both Porter and Lee. However, Schiff would beat Garvey 53% to 38%, according to the survey, which found 9% of likely voters remain undecided.

A general election matchup between Schiff and Porter would be much more competitive, as the poll found the two tied at 30% with 40% of the respondents not sure about their choice.

“I am deeply humbled by the trust and support shown by Californians in this latest poll,” Garvey told the Daily Caller News Foundation in a statement. “This demonstrates that our message of addressing the real issues that Californians care about with compassionate, common-sense solutions is resonating more than the tired political bickering of career politicians. It’s clear that people are ready for new leadership that brings us together to build a brighter future for California.”

The UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies/Los Angeles Times poll surveyed 3,304 likely California voters from Feb. 22 to Feb. 27 with a margin of error of plus or minus 2%.

The Democratic vote has been split up among the three prominent House members in the blue state, and has become an expensive race for the top.

Schiff is currently leading the Democratic field in fundraising with $31.4 million, compared to Porter‘s $28 million and Lee‘s $5 million, according to Federal Election Commission (FEC) filings. The congressman also far out-spent both of his colleagues at $38.7 million this cycle, and enters the primary with more cash on hand than Porter and Lee combined.

Garvey, who jumped in the race on Oct. 10, has brought in $2.1 million for the race, spent $1.4 million and currently has $758,260 in hard dollars, according to FEC data.

The campaigns for Schiff, Lee and Porter did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s requests for comment.