Detroit City Wire

Republican Congressional hopeful John James leads Democratic incumbent Sen. Gary Peters by approximately one-tenth of 1%, according to a new poll.

"I do not think his race hurts John James," said Robert C. Cahaly, chief pollster for the Trafalgar Group in Atlanta. "If anything, it might give him a little edge over a more stale Democratic candidate."

Cahaly tweeted on Sept. 30 that a poll conducted Sept 23 through Sept. 25 shows 47.3% of citizens surveyed prefer James compared to 47.2% for Peters.

John James and his family. James is gunning to unseat Sen. Gary Peters | Facebook

"What we're seeing in the Republican party is a full-on embrace of people who do not look like traditional Republicans but do hold Republican values," Cahaly told the Detroit City Wire. "Just like the excitement we see from Republicans for the new Attorney General Daniel Cameron in Kentucky. Look at how much he led the Republican candidate for governor who lost. Cameron destroyed it. When you have an African American, an Indian American or Hispanic who espouse the same values, Republicans are more inclined to be for them. John James is benefiting from that.”

Peters was elected to the Senate in 2014. 

James has been lauded for his service as a captain in the U.S. Army, his West Point degree and growing his family business to $137 million in revenue while creating 100 jobs. James also possesses an MBA from the University of Michigan.

"It's hard to ever bet against a military veteran who's got some decent pictures of being in the military," said Cahaly.

The poll determined that 40.9% of survey participants were between the ages of 45 and 64.

"John James is the only Republican I see in any of these battleground states who has a level of support that's a little different than President Trump," Cahaly said. "We see about a point or point and a half of voters that are Biden and John James. We do see some Trump voters that are for Peters, but out of all the battleground state Senate races, this is the least symbiotic."

Some 81.6% of poll participants were white and 13.3% Black, according to the poll, and it was reported by the Detroit Free Press that the campaign between James and Peters has been contentious.

"You've got one guy who has a U.S. Senate seat that he'd like to hold onto and another guy who's making his second run," said Cahaly. "They both have a lot to lose."

James lost a Senate seat bid to incumbent Democrat Debbie Stabenow in 2018.

The poll further found that participants in the survey included 45.9% men and 54.1% women.

"John James is going to inherit a lot of Trump's strength plus he's built some of his own, which makes John James not completely dependent upon Trump winning," Cahaly added.