Porter leads Schiff in early look at possible California Senate primary: Poll
David M. Drucker
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Rep. Katie Porter (D-CA) led Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) in a hypothetical 2024 matchup for Senate in California, according to a survey for Porter’s campaign.
Porter, who announced her candidacy for Senate Tuesday, topped Schiff 37% to 26% in a hypothetical general election matchup. Porter and Schiff are both Democrats but could face each other in November 2024 under California’s all-party primary system that advances the top two finishers to the general election contest. Schiff is not yet a candidate, and Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) has not revealed her 2024 plans.
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“In a head-to-head matchup, Porter leads Schiff significantly among Democrats, Republicans and independents,” Democratic pollster David Binder wrote in the polling memo. The survey of 600 likely voters, fielded Nov. 21-22 of last year, had an error margin of 4 percentage points.
Feinstein, 89, has yet to announce whether she will retire in 2024 or seek a sixth full term in the Senate.
But given her age, many Democrats eyeing a 2024 Senate bid expect Feinstein to call it quits after a prolific political career, and they are planning accordingly. Porter was the first high-profile Democrat to enter the contest, but she is not likely to be the last and moved to get a jump on the competition — especially given the nature of how California nominates candidates.
“California needs a warrior in the Senate — to stand up to special interests, fight the dangerous imbalance in our economy, and hold so-called leaders like [Senate Minority Leader] Mitch McConnell accountable for rigging our democracy,” Porter said in a Twitter post announcing her candidacy in a line of attack that also is a subtle dig at Feinstein, who has a history of working closely with Republicans on legislation.
Porter was elected to represent an Orange County House seat in 2018, a Democratic wave year. She narrowly won a third term in California’s redrawn 47th Congressional District in the 2022 midterm elections, holding off Republican Scott Baugh, 51.7% to 48.3%. Schiff, whom House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) is poised to remove from the House Intelligence Committee, where he has long served as the panel’s top Democrat, also is interested in a Senate bid.
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In the Porter poll, Binder also tested a hypothetical, all-party primary matchup with the names of Democrats who might, theoretically, join the campaign. In this contest, Porter edged Schiff 30% to 29%, followed by Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) at 9%, Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) at 6%, and a generic Republican at 9%, with 16% undecided.
In the Porter-Schiff head-to-head, Porter topped Schiff among Democrats 44% to 39%, among Republicans 25% to 5%, and among independents 41% to 20%. Porter also led Schiff in the Los Angeles media market, California’s largest, 39% to 25%, although Schiff also represents a Los Angeles-area seat.