TRENTON – A Quinnipiac University poll of 1,356 New Jersey voters released Wednesday morning found 49 percent approved of Gov. Chris Christie’s job performance while 44 percent disapproved – down from 55 percent to 38 percent on Jan. 15, shortly after the George Washington Bridge scandal broke, according to the Star Ledger.
Voters are split 48 to 48 percent on whether they consider Christie more of a leader or a bully – his worst score yet on a question that probably doesn’t even get asked about other public officials.
Of voters who have heard of Mayor Dawn Zimmer’s allegations against Christie, 57 percent believe her. The allegations were that Christie officials said Zimmer might get more Hurricane Sandy funding if she helped expedite a development uptown that was linked to a close Christie friend. Of those polled, 65 percent said they’d heard of the Hoboken controversy.
The poll contained some good news for Christie. An overwhelming majority – 69 percent – said he had strong leadership qualities, down just a few points from January.
And despite the drop in Christie’s approval ratings, Christie is more popular in New Jersey than President Barack Obama. The president’s 49 percent approval rating is the same as Christie, but his 48 percent disapproval rating is five percentage points higher than the governor’s.
Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) is less popular than Christie, with 43 percent approving and 39 percent disapproving.
And 48 percent of voters said they approved of Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), while 28 percent did not. By a 50 percent to 31 percent margin, voters said they’d choose Booker over an unnamed Republican when he’s up for reelection in November.
The Democrat-led state legislature, taken as a whole, fares worst of all. Just 36 percent of voters approved of its performance, compared to 48 percent who disapproved.
Jersey voters’ esteem for Christie slips; 57 percent believe Zimmer
