Louisiana voters aren’t exactly clamoring to see their Republican governor embark on a run for the White House in 2016, a poll released Thursday showed.
The survey from Democratic-leaning Public Policy Polling found that 66 percent of voters there do not want Gov. Bobby Jindal (R-LA) to run for president in the next cycle. Eighty-one percent of Democrats are opposed to Jindal launching a White House bid, while a smaller majority of in-state Republicans — 53 percent — also said he should not run. Moreover, the poll showed Hillary Clinton edging Jindal in a hypothetical 2016 presidential matchup 48 percent to 45 percent. A Democrat has not carried Louisiana in a presidential election since former President Bill Clinton won the state in 1996.
It’s the latest sign that Jindal’s standing at home has slipped even as his national star has risen. Separate numbers released Wednesday by PPP showed Jindal nursing a paltry approval rating of 37 percent. Tom Jensen, director of PPP, told TPM in an email on Thursday that Jindal’s national ambitions have likely rubbed his constituents the wrong way, citing examples of two other notable former GOP governors.
“As we saw with Sarah Palin and Tim Pawlenty sitting Governors who go national can turn off voters at home for not being attentive enough to their jobs,” Jensen said.
