Lt. Governor Mark Taylor (D) spent the first half of 2006 winning the right to be challenge Governor Sonny Perdue (R) in this November’s election. The second half of the year may be a bit tougher.

Perdue has a 53% to 39% advantage over Taylor in the latest Rasmussen Reports election poll in Georgia (see crosstabs). That’s not much different that our last poll before Taylor’s primary victory. As if a 14-point lead wasn’t enough, Perdue began the general election campaign with $9 million in his campaign war chest while Taylor had just over $1 million.

Thirty-five percent (35%) of Georgians consider the economy to be the most important voting issue this November. Immigration was named most important by 17% followed by National Security and the War in Iraq at 13% each. The candidates are even among those who see the economy as number one but Perdue has a big lead among those who see immigration as most important.

Seventy percent (70%) of Georgia voters believe that election ballots should be printed in English only while 27% believe they should be printed in English and Spanish.

Thirty-four percent (34%) of voters have a “very favorable” opinion of Perdue while just 9% have a “very unfavorable” view. For Taylor, the numbers are 15% “very favorable” and 16% “very unfavorable.”

Crosstabs are available to Premium Members only.