A new survey of Michigan voters found that Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s approval rating has dropped by more than seven percentage points since June.
According to a WDIV/Detroit News poll, Whitmer’s approval rating currently sits at 43.3 percent while 35.9 percent of respondents said they disapprove of her job performance. In June 2019, the same poll found that Whitmer’s approval to disapproval rating was 50.7 percent to 23.7 percent, meaning her disapproval rating has increased by more than 12 percentage points.
The governor’s approval rating is even lower outside of Metro Detroit, with 39.9 percent approving and 41.7 percent disapproving. Inside Metro Detroit, Whitmer has an approval rating of 47.6 percent.
The poll found a slight increase in President Donald Trump’s approval rating, but only 35.5 percent of respondents said they would vote to reelect him. Among Independent voters, 27.3 percent said they would vote to reelect Trump and 46.2 percent said they would vote for someone new. However, Michiganders said they are opposed to impeaching President Trump by a margin of 49.7 percent to 38.5 percent.
Former Vice President Joe Biden holds a seven-point lead over President Trump while Mike Bloomberg has a six-point lead, followed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), who has a four-point lead. The poll found President Trump tied with Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Pete Buttigieg in Michigan.
The poll was good news for Republican John James, who trails incumbent Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI) by just 3.8 percent, which is within the poll’s margin of error, in the race for the U.S. Senate. Seventy percent of respondents said they recognized Peters’ name while 59 percent said the same about James.
James’ Senate campaign announced last week that it out-raised Peters’ campaign by $1 million in the fourth quarter of 2019, reporting a total haul of $3.5 million. Peters said his campaign raised about $2.5 million but has $8 million in cash on hand, which is a state record for end-of-the-year cash on hand.
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Anthony Gockowski is managing editor of The Minnesota Sun and The Ohio Star. Follow Anthony on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
