New Jersey residents skeptical of Cory Booker’s presidential hopes: Poll

A plurality of New Jersey residents said they don’t think Sen. Cory Booker will make a good president, based on a new poll released Thursday.

According to data from Monmouth University Polling Institute, 42 percent of adults in New Jersey said he would not make a good fit for the presidency. Only 15 percent said he has a decent chance of winning the Oval Office.

At least half said he’ll be able to win the Democratic primary, but 22 percent of them said they don’t think he can win against the Republicans.

That doesn’t mean residents think Mr. Booker has done a poor job representing them — the senator has a 48 percent approval rating and half don’t want him to resign while he runs his presidential campaign.

However, residents said juggling both a presidential campaign and his senatorial duties could be too much to handle.

More than half, 58 percent, said they don’t think Mr. Booker would be able to be effective as a New Jersey senator while he continues to campaign for president.

Because of a new state law, Mr. Booker can also be eligible for re-election while he makes a bid for the White House, but 66 percent of New Jersey residents said he should focus on just running for president.

The survey polled 604 New Jersey residents from Feb. 8-10, just a week after Mr. Booker announced his campaign. The poll has a margin of error of 4 percentage points.