Poll: Sandoval widens lead over Gibbons

LAS VEGAS (AP) - Former federal judge Brian Sandoval is pulling away from Gov. Jim Gibbons in the Republican primary race, according to a statewide poll released Saturday.

The Las Vegas Review-Journal survey shows Sandoval has 39 percent to Gibbons' 25 percent among likely primary voters. Former North Las Vegas Mayor Mike Montandon was a distant third, with 7 percent.

Sandoval led Gibbons by

7 percentage points in a similar February poll.

Political analysts said it's unlikely the first-term governor can rebound after a string of personal problems and political missteps since taking office.

"That (poll) means that most voters in the state have already made up their minds on him," said Fred Lokken, a political science professor at Truckee Meadows Com-

munity College in Reno. "Even within his conservative base, he has a credibility or trust problem now."

Republican political consultant Ryan Erwin said Sandoval is wise to stay focused on the June 8 primary because there's still enough time for Gibbons to surge.

"It is such a unique and small slice of the electorate that anything can happen," Erwin said of the primary.

In potential general election matchups, the poll found Sandoval has 50 percent to Democrat Rory Reid's 35 percent, while Reid had 42 percent to Gibbons' 40 percent.

The poll also found 50 percent of Nevadans surveyed want Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto to file a lawsuit to block the federal health care overhaul law. Forty percent were opposed.

Masto has rejected Gibbons' request to file the suit, saying it would be futile from a legal perspective and a waste of taxpayer money. Gibbons has chosen a Las Vegas law firm to take the case for free.

The poll of 625 registered Nevada voters was conducted Monday through Wednesday by Mason-Dixon Polling & Research. The margin of error was plus or minus 4 percentage points on statewide questions and plus or minus 6 percentage points on questions asked only of Republicans.