Ugly poll for Rendell

Timothy McNulty | July 21, 2009

Apparently a tax increase proposal and missing a budget deadline for three weeks will make you unpopular. Here's the PG's story on a new Quinnipiac poll, which also shows Pgh's Tom Corbett is in a good position for guv in 2010:

Gov. Ed Rendell's job approval rating dropped to its lowest level and voters mostly blame him for the state's budget problems, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released this morning.

Voters polled disapprove of the way the governor is doing his job by a 53 to 39 percent margin. They also reject by 63 to 33 percent Mr. Rendell's call to raise the state income tax temporarily to balance the budget.

Rendell is primarily to blame for the budget stalemate, according to 30 percent of voters. Seventeen 17 percent blame the Republicans in the Legislature; 11 percent blame the Democrats and 28 percent blame everyone equally.

Voters also disapprove by 57 to 27 percent of the job the State Legislature is doing. The margin is close to the worst score ever recorded by the poll: 60 to 26 percent on Oct. 5, 2005.

"The hassle in Harrisburg over the state budget certainly has caught the public's attention and voters are angry about it," said Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. "The state economic crisis is sticking to the governor. Only 28 percent of voters approve of his handling of the state budget and only 33 percent approve of his handling of the economy."

State Attorney Gen. Tom Corbett has the best name recognition among Republican contenders in the 2010 Governor's race, while there is no clear leader in the Democratic field, the poll shows. Mr. Rendell is not able to seek a third term as governor.

Corbett leads the Republican field with 38 percent while U.S. Rep. Jim Gerlach gets 15 percent and former U.S. Attorney Pat Meehan gets 9 percent.

The three Democratic candidates, Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato, State Auditor Jack Wagner and businessman Tom Knox, are statistically even among Democrats. Onorato and Wagner each get 16 percent, with Knox at 13 percent and 54 percent undecided.

"At this point there is no leader in the Democratic race for Governor," Mr. Brown said.

From Tuesday through Sunday, Quinnipiac University polled 1,173 Pennsylvania voters with a margin of error of plus or minus 2.9 percentage points. The survey includes 511 Republicans with a margin of error of plus or minus 4.3 percentage points and 512 Democrats with a margin of error of plus or minus 4.3 percentage points.