State Sen. Dick Kelsey (R) holds a negligible lead in the GOP primary for Rep. Todd Tiahrt’s (R) seat, according to a poll released last week by his campaign. Tiahrt’s departure to run for Senate has prompted a wide-open GOP primary race for his seat.

A Dresner, Wickers and Associates poll, paid for by Kelsey’s campaign, showed him with 17 percent of the vote in the primary. State Sen. Jean Schodorf (R) barely trailed Kelsey with 15 percent of the vote, while businessmen Wink Hartman and Republican National Committeeman Mike Pompeo scored 8 percent and 6 percent of the vote, respectively.

Almost half of those questioned in the poll ­— 49 percent ­— reported they were undecided about the race. The poll surveyed 351 likely Republican primary voters Oct. 3-4 and had a margin of error of 5.2 points.