A majority of Florida’s registered voters disapprove of President Obama’s job performance, and as a result, Obama trails Mike Huckabee and Mitt Romney in hypothetical 2012 matchups there, according to a new Sachs/Mason-Dixon poll.
In the poll, 43% of respondents said they approved of Obama’s job performance, compared to 56% who disapproved. Further, only 34% of independents — who could play an important role in picking the state’s winner — approved of Obama’s job performance,
In the head-to-head contests, Obama trailed Huckabee 49%-44%, and lagged Romney 48%-43%. However, Obama did top both Sarah Palin (51%-39%) and Donald Trump (48%-40%) in the poll.
Obama carried the large swing state of Florida by just three points in 2008, and he has signaled that he intends to campaign there heavily in 2012. The state will be an even bigger prize next year when it gains two electoral votes as a result of reapportionment, giving it a total of 29.
The Mason-Dixon poll was conducted April 4-7 among 800 registered voters. It has a margin of error of 3.5%.
