Poll: Dem leads Republican by 5 points in likely match-up for Mississippi governor

Mississippi’s Democratic attorney general holds a slight lead over the state’s GOP lieutenant governor in a potential gubernatorial match-up.

A new Mason-Dixon poll found that 44 percent of people said they would support Democratic Attorney General Jim Hood, compared to 39 percent who said they would support GOP Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves.

{mosads}Hood also leads Reeves in name recognition and favorability, according to the poll. Seventeen percent of respondents said they are undecided between the two potential candidates.

Neither has filed yet for the 2019 race, but both are expected to run to replace Gov. Phil Bryant (R), who is in his second and final term.

If a Democrat were to win the race, it would be the first time the state has seen a Democratic governor in 16 years. Trump won the state by 18 points in 2016.

The poll was conducted by telephone from April 12-14 and got responses from 625 registered voters in Mississippi. The survey has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.