It’s not too surprising that Scott McInnis gets a shout out in a polling firm’s blog, while the other dark-horse Republicans running for governor, Dan Maes and Joe Gschwendtner, get ignored. But McInnis, a former U.S. Congressman, should feel especially good about recent polling numbers.

In February, after Democratic Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper formally entered the race to replace Governor Bill Ritter, who is stepping down,the mayor posted a 49 percent to 45 percent lead over McInnis. But, now, according to the latest Rasmussen Reports statewide telephone survey of likely voters, McInnis has gained an edge on Hick, 47 percent to 41 percent. Just six percent prefer some other candidate and another six percent are undecided.

Turning to ColoradoPols for a second opinion, the political horserace blog still favors Hick. “This was Hick’s race to lose since the day he entered; still no reason to think otherwise,” the blog, which gives Hick 3-1 (unscientific) odds for winning, writes.

Hickenlooper’s staff, meanwhile, is reacting to attacks online through NoJobsJohn.com, which portray the mayor as an incompetent boob who taxes people too much and costs thousands of jobs. There’s a small irony to the blitz. George Merritt, Hickenlooper’s spokesman and a former Denver Post and Associated Press reporter, is cited as a source in the ads by the Republican Governors Association, according to the  Denver Daily News. Of course, Merritt takes exception with the portrayal of the mayor in the ads.