Poll: Davis leads Callis by 19-points in race for 13th District

A new poll shows U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis has a 19-point lead over Democratic challenger Ann Callis with less than two months until Election Day.

In the battle to represent Illinois' 13th Congressional District, the poll that Public Opinion Strategies conducted for Davis' campaign shows 55 percent of district voters favor the incumbent, while 36 percent support Callis, Madison County's former chief judge who last year stepped down from a 19-year career behind the bench to run.

The poll, released Sunday by Public Opinion Strategies, found that Davis' name recognition is at 85 percent, and his image among district voters is 41 percent favorable and 21 percent unfavorable.

Callis' numbers on those two issues polled much lower, with her name recognition at 63 percent, a 19 percent favorable impression and a 17 percent unfavorable impression among district voters.

The poll indicates that President Barack Obama's low job approval rating in Illinois and the GOP's strength on the ballot provides Davis a favorable political environment in the November Election.

It also suggests Callis' self-inflicted wounds have hurt her standing with the voters.

Callis made headlines recently when the Lee Enterprises Springfield bureau reported that when she was still a judge, she signed multiple mortgage papers identifying her residence as a home in Kirkwood, Mo.

The article stated the publication obtained copies of mortgage records and that a Callis' campaign spokesperson, David Miyashiro, confirmed Callis signed the documents. He also said the candidate is a resident of Illinois who lived in a house she owns in Troy, but she moved into a rental house in Edwardsville for the campaign.