Republicans panic as poll shows Senate candidate Marsha Blackburn down by double digits in Tennessee

Republicans in Tennessee have reason to worry about a U.S. senate seat after a poll showed that Rep. Marsh Blackburn (R) is behind by double digits.

The Tennesseanfirst reported on Thursday that a Middle Tennessee State University poll found that Blackburn is trailing former Democratic Gov. Phil Bredesen by a 10-point margin.

Forty-five percent of respondents told pollsters that they favored Bredesen, while 35 percent preferred Blackburn.

Only five percent of Democrats were willing to vote for Blackburn, according to The Tennessean. But 20 percent of Republicans said that they planned to vote fore Bredesen.

Republican Sen. Bob Corker announced last year that he was retiring from the seat.