A majority of voters in three swing states disapprove of how President Obama is handling his job and by wide margins want to see the next president shift away from his policies.
Forty-three percent of voters in both Colorado and Iowa approve of how Mr. Obama is handling his job, compared to 52 percent who disapprove. Forty-four percent in Virginia approve and 53 percent disapprove, a new Quinnipiac poll said.
Mr. Obama carried all three states in both 2008 and 2012.
By 58 percent to 34 percent margins in Iowa and Colorado, voters also say they want the next president to “change direction from Barack Obama’s policies,” and voters in Virginia, by a 61 percent to 31 percent margin, say the same.
A majority of voters in each state do support Mr. Obama’s plan to raise taxes on the wealthy to give tax breaks for the middle class, but majorities in Virginia and Iowa oppose his plan to offer free community college tuition for two years. In Colorado, a plurality, 49 percent to 46 percent, disapproves of his community college plan.
Solid majorities are also satisfied with how things are going in their states, but pluralities say that Mr. Obama’s policies have hurt rather than helped the U.S. economy and that his policies have hurt rather than helped their personal financial situation.
“[W]hile voters in all three states say their state economy is excellent or good, and many say their personal financial situation is improving, more think Obama’s policies have hurt rather than helped the economy,” said Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac Poll. “At this point the president is not getting much credit for the improving economy.”
The poll was conducted Feb. 5-15. The surveys of 1,049 Colorado voters, 1,089 Iowa voters, and 1,074 Virginia voters all have margins of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.
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