Poll: O'Donnell trails far behind Coons in Del.

Democrat Chris Coons leads Republican Christine O'Donnell 57 percent to 38 percent among likely voters in Delaware's U.S. Senate race, according to a new poll by Monmouth University.

O'Donnell, a perennial candidate and conservative activist endorsed by the Tea Party, was viewed as unqualified to serve in the Senate by a solid majority of likely voters, 57 percent, the poll found. Just 35 percent said she was qualified.

In contrast, the man O'Donnell defeated in the GOP primary, Rep. Mike Castle, enjoyed a 56 percent favorable to 29 percent unfavorable rating in the survey. Among those who said they viewed Castle favorably, 74 percent said they would vote for Democrat Coons instead of O'Donnell.

"What looked like a probable Senate pick-up for Republicans has quickly slipped from their grasp," said Patrick Murray, director of the Monmouth Polling Institute, based in New Jersey.

Delaware also offers Democrats one of the few chances in the nation to flip a Republican-held House seat into their column, Murray said..

Democrat John Carney, the state's former lieutenant governor, held a 53 percent to 44 percent over Republican Glen Urquhart, also a Tea Party-endorsed candidate, in the battle for Castle's House seat. Delaware has one at-large representative in the House.

The poll found a strong regional breakdown of opinion in the Senate race. While the race between O'Donnell and Coons was essentially tied in Kent and Sussex counties, largely rural areas in the southern part of Delaware, Coons enjoyed a 63 percent to 33 percent lead in the populous New Castle County around Wilmington.

Coons is the New Castle County executive.

The Monmouth Poll was conducted by an automated telephone response system, based on contacts with 790 voters who said they were all but certain or likely to vote Nov. 2. Results are subject to a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.