LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – The latest Mitchell Research & Communications poll conducted on July 17 and 18 shows a tightening race between GOP gubernatorial frontrunner Tudor Dixon and Kevin Rinke, yet Rinke expressed strong opinions about the validity of the poll.
The poll, commissioned by MIRS News, shows Dixon at 28 percent and Rinke at 20 percent, and he’s quickly gaining ground.
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Kelly is at 15 percent and Soldano is at 10. Ralph Rebandt is polling at 1 percent.
On “The Steve Gruber Show” on Thursday, Rinke doubled-down on previous claims that pollster Steve Mitchell is an “internal pollster.”
“The way the questions are asked gives you the results that you’re looking for,” Rinke said in the interview. “Mr. Mitchell is as equally tied to the Devos family and has a history of working for the DeVos family.”
The DeVos family has endorsed Dixon in the governor’s race.
Earlier this week, Mitchell sent out a press release which responded to an article that appears to tie Rinke and his campaign to comments accusing Mitchell of being biased. Mitchell said, “I am not, nor have I been, a consultant to the Tudor Dixon Campaign. Neither I, nor my company, have not received one nickel from the Dixon campaign, from any organizations associated with the Dixon campaign, or from any individuals associated with the Dixon campaign.”
In addition, Mitchell told Michigan News Source on Thursday that he has worked for the DeVos family in the past, but that does not play into the way he conducts his polls.
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“It’s not a rigged poll,” Mitchell said. “The numbers are the numbers.”
On Monday, Mitchell said he would file a libel lawsuit if the Rinke campaign continued to damage his reputation, but he said anyone can argue the accuracy of any poll.
“Rinke ought to be an expert in lawsuits since had so many filed against him by former employees,” Mitchell said. “I’m not going to add to that.”
