Workman said she had planned to hire a campaign manager when the campaign season hit full-tilt, and that the campaign had hoped for a "heavy-hitter" like Bleak. As for the poll numbers, she was not surprised that the race had gotten closer, although she still expects to win.

"We always knew this would be a hotly contested race," she said. "Campaigns ebb and flow. The great thing about Chris is that he will help us strategize . . . . We will win this campaign."

Corroon was also not surprised by the numbers, although he felt that as the campaign season progresses, his support would continue to improve. As for the Bleak hiring, "our focus is on our campaign."

"We've always felt we were close, so it's encouraging to see the results," Corroon said. "We think that the more we get out our message, the higher those numbers will be."

Cook was equally upbeat, especially considering that he has not really started campaigning. With three strong candidates, he expected that anyone who could get 35 to 40 percent of the vote would win, a number he felt confident he could reach by attracting the 25 percent who were undecided — as well as Republicans who turn away from Workman. Historically, the former congressman has always done well with independent Salt Lake County voters .

"I think they (Republicans) are more likely to come halfway instead of going all of the way to the Democratic candidate," he said. "We're very well positioned."

The new poll shows that Cook gets 15 percent of the independent vote in the mayor's race, Workman gets 19 percent of that vote and Corroon has 28 percent support among independents. Cook also gets 11 percent of the GOP vote to Workman's 51 percent.

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