WILKES-BARRE, Penn. – A new voter poll released this morning shows Democrat Paul Kanjorski, the staunchest credit union ally in Congress, trailing his Republican challenger Lou Barletta going into the final two weeks of the campaign.
The 13-term incumbent defeated Barletta, the mayor of Hazelton, two times before, including in 2008 by 52% to 48%.
The new poll, conducted by Franklin and Marshall’s Center for Politics and Public Affairs, shows Kanjorski trailing behind among likely voters by 47% to 40%; with 12% undecided. Among all registered voters, Barletta leads 45% to 38%, with 16% undecided.
Among registered voters, 36% rated Kanjorski’s job performance as “excellent” or “good,’’ and 36% say he deserves reelection.
Kanjorski has been the chief champion of credit unions ever since his sponsorship of HR 1151, the 1998 CU Membership Access Act, and was co-sponsor of last year’s bill that created the corporate credit union bailout.
