Knox, Williams fare poorly in poll

A survey of the nearly non-existent Philadelphia mayor’s race by the startup firm Municipoll shows Mayor Nutter with little to worry about from the two candidates who are still at least toying with the idea of challenging him.

The poll sample is large – 871 likely-voting Democrats, while the methodology, push-button phone responses, is questioned by some. But it’s at least an independent survey.

Much of what it tells us is familiar. Nutter isn’t overwhelmingly popular, but well ahead of any credible alternative. He’s better liked by whites than blacks, but leads in both categories.

The most interesting finding might be in the grab-bag question which asks voters to choose from among eight candidates: Bob Brady, Chaka Fattah, Dwight Evans, Tom Knox, Anthony Williams, Michael Nutter, Bill Green and Sam Katz.

Knox and Williams, the two candidates who are still in the pondering stage, finished dead last, trailing “undecided” by three and two points respectively.

Knox has all but said he could run as an independent in the fall, while Williams is considering a run in the Democratic primary.

Whatever the numbers, the money Knox could put into a race makes him a candidate no one should take lightly. You can read the whole poll here. It first appeared on the PoliticsPa website.

Also, I know there’s a lot of noise now about Glen Beck’s clueless comments about Philadelphia’s streets, but did you catch his equally bizarre assertion that Ed Rendell is among the handful of elites who control and mislead America? I picked this up on Will Bunch’s blog Attytood.