After struggling for months to attract more than 40% support in the race for Maine's gubernatorial mansion, Democratic Governor John Baldacci has finally gained some ground. He now enjoys 44% support and an eight-point lead against each of his two leading opponents.

The incumbent leads Congressman Dave Emery 44% to 36%. In April, the governor trailed Emery 42% to 39%.

Baldacci also leads State Senator Peter Mills by a 44% to 36% margin. In the April Rasmussen Reports survey in Maine, the governor was neck-and-neck with Mills, besting him by only a single point.

Baldacci holds an even larger lead over State Senator Chandler Woodcock, 46% to 33%. That's six points more than his April lead over Woodcock.

Baldacci attracts higher support from other Democrats (74% at best) than the Republican candidates attract from other Republicans (65% at best). The governor consistently wins a plurality of moderate voters and voters unaffiliated with either major party.

Baldacci is viewed favorably by 55% of all likely Maine voters, a four-point gain since April and a sixteen-point gain since late February. He is viewed unfavorably by 42%.

No potential challenger is viewed favorably by more than 44%. But the Republicans are still unknown to at least a quarter of voters. In Woodcock's case, 32% are Not Sure what to think of him.

Republican Senator Olympia Snowe, expected to easily win a third term, is viewed favorably by 74%. Forty-seven percent (47%) of all voters regard her Very Favorably.

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Fifty-eight percent (58%) say tax increases hurt the economy; 46% say tax cuts help it. To compare these results to other states, click here.

Fifty-nine percent (59%) of Maine voters believe the country should welcome all immigrants but for criminals, national security threats, and those likely to exploit welfare programs. Seventy-one percent (71%) say policymakers should focus on securing our borders and enforcing existing immigration law before considering other reforms. Those figures are similar to results from many other states.

Thirty-seven percent (37%) agree that all illegal aliens should be forced to leave the country; 45% disagree. Fifty-nine percent (59%) believe that the children of illegal aliens should not become citizens automatically (see national results).

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