Gerlach's Poll Gives Him 24-Point Lead on Trivedi

According to an internal poll the campaign of Jim Gerlach (PA-6) released on Monday, the five-term US Representative leads Democratic challenger Manan Trivedi 54-30, Politics PA is reporting.

By the reckoning of the Gerlach pollsters, his main areas of advantage are name identification—where 92 percent of respondents said they recognized the five-term congressman, against just 36 percent for Trivedi—and his large leads in a handful of key demographics; including a 14 percent advantage among Independents and a 22 percent edge with seniors.

But while the challenger likely didn’t welcome the poll results, a Trivedi spokesman said they should be greeted with skepticism. Gerlach’s campaign released internal polls in July and September of 2010 that showed him with leads of 29 and 30 points, but he went on to top Trivedi by just 14 in that November's election.