A poll released Tuesday indicated that Colorado voters are somewhat disgruntled with Gov. John Hickenlooper (D), but the incumbent still claims an advantage over his potential Republican rivals.
The survey from Quinnipiac University showed nearly half of voters —49 percent — do not believe Hickenlooper deserves re-election, compared with 42 percent who said he does deserve a second term. Approval of Hickenlooper’s job performance is split. Forty-eight percent said they approve of the job he’s doing as governor, while 46 percent said they disapprove.
But the poll also found Hickenlooper with leads ranging from four to six points over four different prospective GOP challengers.
He claimed a five point edge over Tom Tancredo, the former border hawk congressman who launched his gubernatorial bid earlier this year. Hickenlooper’s narrowest lead came against state Sen. Mike Kopp (R). Forty-four percent of voters said they would back Hickenlooper, while 40 percent said they would support Kopp.
Hickenlooper signed sweeping gun control measures into law earlier this year, legislation that cost two state Democratic lawmakers their seats in recall elections. A former chairman of the Colorado Republican Party said in September that the recalls could be a bad omen for Hickenlooper in 2014.
Tuesday’s poll showed a majority of 55 percent of voters opposed to the “stricter new gun control laws,” similar to Quinnipiac’s findings in August.
But both Quinnipiac polls showed more than 80 percent of Colorado voters support background checks for all gun buyers. The measures signed into law by Hickenlooper earlier this year included an expansion of background checks on gun purchases.
This post has been updated.
