According to results of Quinnipiac poll released Wednesday morning, the percentage of Floridians who now approve of Gov. Rick Scott’s (R) job performance has remained unchanged since two months ago. But at the same time, the percentage who disapprove of his job performance has more than doubled, putting his net approval rating deep underwater.
In the latest poll, a 48% plurality of registered voters now disapprove of how Scott has handled his job, a huge leap from February when only 22% of voters disapproved of the new Governor’s job performance. Meanwhile, 35% of voters currently approve of Scott’s job performance, the exact same percentage who gave Scott a thumbs up two months ago.
Scott, who was elected by a razor-thin one-point margin last year, has seen his support quickly erode as he’s pursued a number of highly contentious proposals, such as eliminating tenure for new teachers, and tying future pay to teachers’ performance. In the poll, 57% of respondents disapproved of Scott’s push for a merit pay system, compared to 39% who approved.
Further, a strong 55% majority disapproved of how Scott has handled the state’s budget overall, versus just 36% who approved.
Scott is one of several freshmen GOP governors who have rapidly fallen from favor since assuming office. Polls have shown Scott, along with Wisconsin’s Scott Walker, Michigan’s Rick Snyder, and Ohio’s John Kasich, all losing hypothetical do-over contests against the Democrats they topped in last year’s elections. In Scott’s case, a PPP poll showed him losing to Alex Sink by a resounding 20-point margin.
The Quinnipiac poll was conducted March 29 through April 4 among 1,499 registered voters. It has a margin of error of 2.5%.
