Gov. Kenneth Mapp and Democratic challenger Albert Bryan Jr. are running neck and neck in the weeks leading up to the Nov. 6 general election, with the largest share of voters still undecided, according to a poll released Thursday by the University of the Virgin Islands.
The poll was conducted by V.I. Tech Stack and the UVI Institute for Leadership and Organizational Effectiveness. John Yob of V.I. Tech Stack presented and explained the poll and its results. Yob is a St. John transplant from Michigan who runs a company receiving Economic Development Commission tax breaks. He has a long history of activity in the Republican Party in Michigan and worked on multiple campaigns. Yob is author of: “Chaos: The Outsider’s Guide to a Contested Republican National Convention” which analyzes the ins and outs of the formal convention rules and how a candidate could use those processes in the context of the 2016 presidential election.
The poll shows Bryan besting Mapp in the St. Thomas/St. John district with 29 percent to Mapp’s 13 percent. But the numbers flip on St. Croix with the governor taking the lead with 32 percent to Bryan’s 17 percent.
Territory-wide, Mapp and Bryan are in a dead heat with 23 percent of the vote each. But the survey shows 40 of voters are undecided on St. Thomas/St. John, and on St. Croix, 32 percent are undecided. Those voters can swing the election in either direction.
The remainder of the gubernatorial slate, according to the poll, are far behind with territorial percentages for Warren Mosler at 7 percent, Adlah “Foncie” Donastorg at 6 percent; Soraya Diase Coffelt at 5 percent; Janette Millin Young and Moleto A. Smith both at 1 percent with 33 percent undecided.
The poll was conducted Sept. 29 through Oct. 1, through a combination of online interviews and automated phone calls using a list of 800 registered voters. The poll has a 3.46 percent margin of error.
Here are the poll results:
Poll Percentages for the Governor’s race
In the St. Thomas/St. John District
–Albert Bryan Jr. 29%;
–Kenneth E. Mapp 13%;
–Soraya Diase Coffelt 8%;
–Adlah “Foncie” Donastorg 7%;
–Warren Mosler 4%;
–Moleto A. Smith 2%;
–Janette Millin Young 2%;
–Undecided 35%.
In the Saint Croix District
–Kenneth E. Mapp 32%;
–Albert Bryan Jr. 17%;
– Warren Mosler 10%
– Allah “Foncie” Donastorg 5%
–Soraya Diase Coffelt 3%;
–Janette Millin Young 1%;
–Moleto A. Smith 1%;
–Undecided 32% .
Territory-wide
–Kenneth E. Mapp 23%;
–Albert Bryan Jr. 23%;
–Warren Mosler 7%;
–Adlah “Foncie” Donastorg 6%;
–Soraya Diase Coffelt 5%;
–Janette Millin Young 1%;
–Moleto A. Smith 1%;
–Undecided 33%.
Senator At-Large Poll Percentages
In the St. Thomas/St. John District
–Steven D. Payne 24%;
–Angel L. Bolques 16%;
–Sherry-Ann Francis 12%;
–Undecided 49%.
In the St. Croix District
–Steven D. Payne 19%;
–Angel L. Bolques 12%;
–Sherry-Ann Francis 11%;
–Undecided 59%.
Territory-wide
–Steven D. Payne 22%;
–Angel L. Bolques 14%;
–Sherry-Ann Francis 11%;
–Undecided 54%.
Poll Percentages for the Senatorial race
In the St. Thomas/St John District
–Donna Frett-Gregory 10%;
–Janelle K. Sarauw 9%;
–Athneil “Bobby” Thomas 8%;
–Myron Jackson 6%;
–Marvin A. Blyden 6%;
–Dwayne M. DeGraff 4%;
–Stedmann Hodge Jr. 4%;
–Jean A. Ford 3%;
–Carla Joseph 3%;
–Alma Francis-Heyliger 3%;;
–Stephen “Smokey” Frett 2%;
–Irvin Punda Mason, Sr. 2%;
–Delores Todman 1%;
–Bruce Flamon 1%;
–Wilma Marsh Monsanto;
–George Trager <1;
–Margaret Price <1;
–Gustave R. Dowling <1.
In the St. Croix District
–Allison DeGazon 14%;
–Alicia Barnes 10%;
–Javon James 8%;
–Kurt Vialet 7%;
–Novell E. Francis Jr. 6%;
–Oakland Benta 4%;
–Genevieve Whitaker 3%;
–Daren “Bogle” Stevens 3%;
–Lilliana Belardo de O’Neal 2%;
–Malik Stridiron 2%;
–Emmett Hansen 1%;
–Robert Moorhead 1%;
–Michael J. Springer Jr. 1%;
–Patricia James 1%;
–Carew Felix 1%;
–Norman Jn Baptiste <1;
–Omar Hashim Henry <1;
–Abraham Ortiz <1;
–Troy Mason <1;
–Undecided 32%.
