Updated - Steans-Madigan Poll Numbers Changing Fast

UPDATE: It's now 12:30 p.m. on July 28, and Heather Steans has pulled ahead of Jim Magidan - again. Our poll now shows Steans with 41 percent to Madigan with 34 percent. This will undoubtedly change again, so keep watching the poll. The original post: Monday, July 27, 11:00 p.m. - Incumbent Heather Steans lags behind openly gay challenger Jim Madigan for the first time in a poll by Chicago News Bench. They are running to be the Democrat nominee in the February 2, 2010 Democrat primary for the 7th District Illinois State Senate seat. The Results So Far: At 11:00 p.m. on July 27, 35% of respondents said they would vote for Steans, 38% said they would vote for Madigan, and 23% said they would vote for Elder (if she ran again). "Other" had a response of 4%. There is an error margin, but we don't know what the heck it is and freely admit that the poll is not scientific. Nevertheless, it's fun to watch. It's also fun to vote in it. The CNB poll began on July 17. The poll asks who people will vote for in the primary: Heather Steans, Jim Madigan, or Suzanne Elder. Elder was defeated by Steans (rhymes with "stains") in a special election in February, 2008 to replace outgoing State Senator Carol Ronen. Although Elder is not a declared candidate, some people would like to see her run again. Illinois state senators serve a two-year term. Windy City Times, a gay-oriented paper in Chicago, noted the already-tense feeling of the race for the 7th District. Reported the Times: When asked what spurred him to run, Madigan responded, "For me, it’s the need to have legislators who will exercise independent judgment; who will challenge the party bosses and leaders in this state when it’s appropriate; and who will side with the individual voters rather than paying special attention to campaign contributors. I think [ Heather ] is a decent person, but I think the reality is that if she had not given [ former Gov. ] Rod Blagojevich $170,000, she would not have had that seat open up for her."( Steans, when notified of Madigan’s remark, responded, "Jim’s statement is based on faulty facts...." (Source) Ironically, Steans's retort was correct. Madigan said that Steans gave Rod Blagojevich "$170.000," but in fact it was much closer to $200,000. Also See: Steans Faces New Competition for 7th Dist IL State Senate Seat - Chicago News Bench Greg Harris Endorses Heather Steans in 7th Senate District Race - David Ormsby Sen. Heather Steans, Money Whore - Chicago News Bench Senator Heather Steans, For The Children - Chuck Cowdery Blog See Heather Carry Water For The Machine - Chuck Cowdery Blog Steans Ejects Citizen Journalist From Victory Party - Chicago News Bench Leave a Comment... See Our Online Store Chicago News Bench RSS Feed We're on Twitter...