KING 5 Poll: "Hutchison, Constantine headed for showdown"

KING 5:

With two weeks to go until votes are counted in the primary for King County Executive, it appears former TV news anchor Susan Hutchison will likely be facing off with King County Councilmember Dow Constantine, according to a new KING 5 News poll.

The poll, conducted last weekend by SurveyUSA, shows Hutchison would get 39 percent of the vote if the election were held today. That’s unchanged from a similar poll three weeks ago.

Constantine takes 13 percent of the vote, up one point from the last poll.

Here’s how other candidates ranked:

-Sen. Fred Jarrett - 8 percent

-Rep. Ross Hunter – 8 percent

-King Co. Councilmember Larry Phillips – 6 percent

-Stan Lippmann – 2 percent

-Alan Lobdell – 2 percent

-Goodspaceguy – 2 percent

Twenty percent of the 606 likely voters polled say they are still undecided, so the race for second could change dramatically.

Only the top two candidates in the primary will advance to November’s general election.

Hutchison has been the clear leader in the polls since announcing her candidacy, which political strategists say is not a surprise given her name recognition after years as a news anchor.

Hutchison lawsuit records

A judge is expected to rule on Friday whether to unseal the records of a discrimination lawsuit filed by Hutchison against her former employer, KIRO-TV.

In 2003, Hutchison claimed age and race discrimination when she was replaced on the anchor desk by a young, Asian woman. The Seattle Times requested to have those records released to provide a better picture of the candidate. Several other media outlets, including KING-TV and Northwest Cable News, have joined the request.

Hutchison is fighting the release, saying she’s doing so in part to protect the privacy rights of others who may file suit against their employers.

Published reports indicate there may be issues of whether Hutchison collected disability pay when she was able to work after she left KIRO-TV.

Hutchison’s attorney, Jon Rosen, says he plans to appeal if the ruling goes against Hutchison.