News
Connecticut voters say Gov. Rell copped out on budget
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Sep 16, 2009 - 1:23 PM

Connecticut voters say 56 – 34 percent that Gov. Jodi Rell “copped out” by her refusal to either sign or veto the recently enacted state budget, and disapprove 52 – 42 percent of her handling of the state budget, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today.

Gov. Rell gets a 59 – 34 percent overall approval rating, down from 65 – 30 percent in a July 22 survey by the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University. But she still does better than governors in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Ohio, states where Quinnipiac University has conducted surveys in recent months.

And Connecticut’s Governor has a much higher approval rating that the State Legislature, which has a negative 35 – 55 percent score, its worst score since July 2003. Voters disapprove 61 – 28 percent of the way Democrats in the legislature are handling the state budget.

Voters split 45 – 44 percent in their approval of the way Rell is handling the job situation in Connecticut and disapprove 49 – 44 percent of the way she is handling taxes.

“By a hefty 22-point margin, voters think that by allowing the budget to become law without her signature or veto, Gov. Jodi Rell copped out,” said Quinnipiac University Poll Director Douglas Schwartz, PhD.

“Gov. Rell’s approval is down six points to 59 percent. She has hit an all-time low, although neighboring governors would love to have those numbers.

“Democrats can’t take comfort in these numbers, since their score on the budget is much lower than the Governor’s.”
“But Democrats might hope that the Rell juggernaut finally has hit a pothole, which could set the stage for a competitive race for Governor next year.”

“There was some thought that with Sen. Christopher Dodd’s reelection campaign dominating the headlines that nobody would pay much attention to the Democratic candidates for Governor, ensuring another landslide victory for Rell,” Dr. Schwartz added.
“If her job approval continues to decline, that could change.”

Connecticut voters disapprove 45 – 26 percent of the new state budget. On other budget-related questions the Quinnipiac

University poll finds:

• Voters who disapprove of Rell’s failure to act on the budget say 54 – 34 percent that she should have vetoed it;
• Voters split 46 – 44 percent on whether more budget cuts should have been made or whether additional cuts would have jeopardized vital services;
• Voters feel 48 – 45 percent that state leaders should have kept working on the budget, no matter how long it took;
• 81 percent of voters are “very concerned” or “somewhat concerned” that the budget relies
too much on borrowing.

Key elements of the budget receive wide voter support, including:
• 74 – 24 percent in favor of higher taxes for upper income individuals and families;
• 65 – 32 percent support cutting the sales tax from 6 percent to 5.5 percent;
• 68 – 30 percent in favor of raising cigarette taxes from $2 to $3 per pack.

But voters disapprove 66 -28 percent of cutting estate taxes for the wealthy. Even Republicans disapprove 52 – 36 percent.
“Among those who disapprove of Gov. Rell’s decision to not sign the budget bill, most think she should have vetoed it,” Schwartz said. “Nearly half of voters think spending could have been cut more; two-thirds disapprove of cutting estate taxes for the wealthy and over 80 percent are concerned about the level of borrowing.”

From September 10 – 14, Quinnipiac University surveyed 921 Connecticut registered voters with a margin of error of +/- 3.2 percentage points.

The Quinnipiac University Poll conducts public opinion surveys in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Florida, Ohio and the nation as a public service and for research.
For more data and RSS feed – http://www.quinnipiac.edu/polling.xml, or call (203) 582-5201.

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