With nine days to go before Louisiana holds the primary elections that were delayed by Hurricane Gustav, Republican Chris Gorman has released a new poll that showed him leading his two GOP opponents in the Shreveport-based 4th district.

Gorman, a trucking company executive, took 31 percent of the vote in the poll while physician John Fleming took 29 percent and Bossier Chamber of Commerce President Jeff Thompson, whom outgoing Rep. Jim McCrery (R) has endorsed, trailed with 17 percent. Twenty-three percent were undecided.

The survey of 300 likely voters was conducted Sept. 22-23 by the firm Public Opinion Strategies and had a margin of error of 5.7 points.

It seems likely that no candidate will achieve the simple majority necessary to avoid a runoff, so the top two finishers in the GOP race are expected to meet in a runoff on Nov. 4. The winner of that contest will then move on to the December general election, where they will almost certainly face Caddo Parish District Attorney Paul Carmouche, whom national Democrats are backing in the Democratic primary.