After trailing in the race in every poll since January, Gov. Jon Corzine (D) holds a lead in a major public poll. The FDU/Public Mind survey gives him a one-point lead over Republican Chris Christie (R), with independent Chris Daggett now drawing significant support.

General Election Matchup
Corzine 38
Christie 37
Daggett 17
Don't Know 6

Christie's lead in the RCP Average is down to 2.5.

In FDU's last survey in early September, Daggett was not included in the list, but 1 percent volunteered his name. In this month's survey, Daggett was volunteered by 4 percent in a survey in which his name was not included. But Corzine led that head-to-head as well, 44-43.

A cautionary vote, however. When the name of another independent candidate -- Gary Steele -- was included instead of Daggett's, even he drew double-digit support. That would seem to suggest that Daggett's pool of support includes many casual voters unhappy with the major party options, and who may ultimately not vote at all.

Debate Impact

The first televised debate occurred during the polling sample. Of the pool of respondents polled from Friday on, only 24 percent say they watched. Of that group, 14 percent of voters say Daggett won, followed by 12 percent who say Corzine, and just 4 percent say Christie. Three-in-five voters couldn't say. The real impact may be in boosting the independent's visibility -- only a third of voters say they had heard of him in the September survey; now, half of voters did.

Voters are increasingly convinced Corzine will win, with 49 percent now saying they expect that result -- up from 45 percent in September. Only 38 percent say they approve of Corzine's job performance, though that's a slight improvement from last month. His favorable rating jumped 6 points while his unfavorable number held stead. Christie's favorable number dropped 3 points, while his unfavorable rating climbed 7 points.

Favorable Ratings
Corzine 37 / 54
Christie 35 / 42
Daggett 16 / 7

The telephone poll of 667 likely voters was conducted from September 28-October 5, and had a margin of error of +/- 4 percent.