Republicans dominate the list of the most popular governors in the country, with Democrats numbering among the least popular, according to a new survey.
Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker, a Republican, tops the list with a 74% job approval rating and a 21% disapproval rating, according to the Morning Consult poll released Thursday.
Mr. Baker is followed by 10 fellow Republicans: Govs. Phil Scott of Vermont, Larry Hogan of Maryland, Jim Justice of West Virginia, Asa Hutchinson of Arkansas, Chris Sununu of New Hampshire, Spencer Cox of Utah, Kay Ivey of Alabama, Mark Gordon of Wyoming, Doug Burgum of North Dakota and Mike DeWine of Ohio.
At the bottom of the list is Oregon Gov. Kate Brown, a Democrat who is the nation’s least popular governor. About 54% of Oregonians disapproved of Mrs. Brown’s job performance and 41% approved.
Rounding out the bottom 10 (in no particular order): Democratic Govs. David Ige of Hawaii, Daniel McKee of Rhode Island, Tony Evers of Wisconsin, Tom Wolf of Pennsylvania, Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico and Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan; and Republican Govs. Doug Ducey of Arizona, Tate Reeves of Mississippi and Kim Reynolds of Iowa.
Republican Governors Association spokesperson Joanna Rodriguez told The Washington Times in a statement that it was “no coincidence” that Republican governors are the highest rated in the country.
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“GOP governors across the country are prioritizing cutting taxes, breaking records of employment, and standing up to the radical and reckless policies coming from the Biden administration in Washington.”
The Times did not immediately hear back from the Democratic Governors Association.
Of the 28 governors up for reelection this fall, only Mr. Evers is viewed more negatively than positively by voters, with 45% of Wisconsinites approving of his job performance and 48% disapproving.
Of the 28 governors up for reelection this fall, only Mr. Evers is viewed more negatively than positively by voters, with 45% of Wisconsinites approving of his job performance and 48% disapproving.
Democratic governors whose reelection bids are seen as toss-ups by The Cook Political Report have approval ratings at or just above 50%. That includes Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly (55%), Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak (51%) and Michigan’s Ms. Whitmer (50%).
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, a Democrat, has a 57% approval rating by his state’s voters and a 35% disapproval rating.
The pollsters conclude that the average Republican governor has a higher approval rating than the average moderate Democratic governor, 58% to 51%, because of the high approval ratings of several blue-state GOP governors.
The Morning Consult surveys of each state were conducted Jan. 1-March 31. They had a representative sample of at least 601 registered voters in each state, with unweighted margins of error of plus or minus 1 to 4 percentage points.
• Kerry Picket can be reached at kpicket@washingtontimes.com.
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