For immediate release:Date: August 5, 2014Survey: Nielson Brothers Polling, South Dakota Senate Election Survey, July 23 to 28, 2014Subject: South Dakota Senate Election Match up and Candidate FavorablesContact information: nbpolling@gmail.com, 605 496-0911Website: nielsonbrotherspolling.com http://nielsonbrotherspolling.com/ http://nielsonbrotherspolling.com/Rounds Leads Weiland, Pressler and Howie in Nielson Brothers Survey of South Dakota

Senate Race

Former Republican South Dakota governor Mike Rounds leads Democratic challenger Rick Weiland by nearly 13 points in the U.S. Senate race in the Nielson Brothers Polling/Northern Plains News (NBP/NPN) poll conducted in late July. In the July 23-28 survey of likely South Dakota voters, 42.9 percent of respondents said they planned to vote for Mike Rounds, and 30.2 percent for Rick Weiland. Independent Larry Pressler received 14.2 percent of support, while Independent Gordon Howie drew 4.1 percent, and 8.6 percent were “undecided.” With 578 respondents, the margin of error on this voting question is 4.04 percent.

According to NBP partner Paul Nielson, “Larry Pressler’s campaign as an Independent is drawing similar support from both major parties.” The former Republican Senator’s support breaks down at 45 percent Democratic, 40 percent Republicans, and 14 percent Independents/Other parties. This compares with 80 percent of Round’s support coming from Republicans, and 73 percent of Weiland’s support coming from Democrats.

Nielson continues, “As a percentage of all likely voters, 17.9 percent of all Democrats, 11.1 percent of all Republicans, and 18.9 percent of all Independents/Others support Pressler in the NBP survey.”

Independent Gordon Howie, by contrast, pulls most of his support from Republicans and Independents/Others (5.8 and 5.1 percent, respectively). Just 1.5 percent of Democrats said that they plan to vote for Howie. When asked to rate the candidates’ favorability, respondents gave Republican Mike Rounds and Independent Larry Pressler both higher favorables (44.3 and 38.5 percent, respectively) and unfavorables (40.1 and 35.2 percent, respectively) than Rick Weiland (35.4 percent “favorable” and 28.7 “unfavorable”). Rounds and Pressler were also more familiar to respondents. Only 4.7 percent said they did not know Rounds, and 9.9 percent did not know Pressler, compared with 22 percent that did not know Weiland. NBP did not measure Gordon Howie’s favorability ratings.

Nielson Brothers Polling, an independent company based in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, conducted this South Dakota survey of likely voters from July 23 - 28, 2014. NBP is releasing its findings in conjunction with NPN ( Northern Plains News), an online news and distribution service in Harrisburg, South Dakota. In the next few days, NBP and NPN will continue to release more findings, including on the Governor and U.S. House races, the ballot initiative on minimum wage, direction of the country, and on the issues of same sex marriage and immigration reform. For more information contact NBP at nbpolling@gmail.com or 605 496-0911 or NPN at editor@nplainsnews.com or 605 351-5021.

Questions, response numbers (%), and margins of error (MOE) Rick Weiland, if you have a favorable opinion, press one... 590 responses; 4.0 % MOE, Answers: Favorable: 35.4

Unfavorable: 28.7 Do not know the name: 22.0

Undecided: 13.8

Mike Rounds: If you have a favorable opinion press one. If unfavorable press two…..589 responses; 4.0 % MOE, Answers: Favorable: 44.3

Unfavorable: 40.1Do not know the name: 4.7Undecided: 10.9

Larry Pressler: If you have a favorable opinion press one. If unfavorable press two…..587 responses; 4.01 % MOE, Answers: Favorable: 38.5

Unfavorable: 35.2Do not know the name: 9.9Undecided: 16.4

….for US Senate would you vote for Republican Mike Rounds, Democrat Rick Weiland, Independent Larry Pressler, or Independent Gordon Howie? 578 responses; 4.04 % MOE, Answers: Mike Rounds: 42.9

Rick Weiland: 30.2Larry Pressler:: 14.2Gordon Howie: 4.1Undecided: 8.6