Republican Mike Minogue is still behind Gov. Maura Healey in the race for governor, but he's gaining ground, according to a recent poll.
Healey leads Minogue 54% to 38% in the University of New Hampshire Survey Center’s latest poll, released late last week. That puts Minogue 16 points behind the Democratic governor.
That's an eight point improvement over where they had him last month. The same pollster put Healey ahead 54% to 30%. Minogue gained support, while Healey flatlined.
This is the best Minogue has done in a UNH poll against Healey so far. He was at 27% in February and 32% in both April and June.
Additionally, the electorate has mixed opinions on both candidates.
The poll said 40% view Healey favorably, while 41% view her unfavorably. The breakdown for Minogue is very similar; 37% have a favorable view of him, while 39% have an unfavorable opinion.
Healey remains the favorite in the race. Election forecaster Sabato's Crystal Ball puts the Massachusetts governor's race in the Safe D category, along with California, Hawaii, and New York.
For Minogue to gain ground, he will need to appeal to those who don't typically vote Republican. That's because he already has 100% support among those who self-identify as Republicans, according to the poll.