At the beginning of the six-week sprint to the GOP runoff election in the 2nd district, state Rep. Jay Love appears to hold a commanding lead over state Sen. Harri Anne Smith, according to an internal poll released Monday by Love’s campaign.

The survey of 300 likely Republican runoff voters was conducted by the GOP firm McLaughlin & Associates and showed Love with 60 percent and Smith at 32 percent. The margin of error was 5.7 points.

The poll was conducted on June 5, just two days after Tuesday’s primary election in which none of the six Republican candidates was able to secure the majority of votes necessary to win the race outright. Love was the top performer in the primary with 35 percent while Smith came in second with 22 percent.

The poll showed Love with higher favorable ratings than Smith (68 percent to 51 percent) and lower unfavorable ratings than Smith (5 percent to 19 percent).

The runoff election will take place on July 15. The winner will face Montgomery Mayor Bobby Bright (D) in what should be a very competitive race to replace retiring Rep. Terry Everett (R).

— John McArdle