A new Quinnipiac poll of New York finds that the state’s registered voters overwhelmingly disapprove of Gov. David Paterson’s (D) performance — but at the same time, they don’t want him to resign from office over his reported intervention into domestic violence charges against an aide.
Paterson’s approval rating has reached an all-time low in Quinnipiac’s polling, with only 24% approval and 62% disapproval. This is a sharp decline from his already-terrible ratings from a month ago, when he was at 37%-54%. However, 61% of respondents also said he should serve out his full term, against only 31% who think he should resign. Both of these poll results were spread fairly evenly across partisan lines.
Paterson, who succeeded to the office in 2008 after the resignation of Gov. Eliot Spitzer, already announced last week that he would not seek a full term as governor in this year’s election. A key factor in the reluctance to see Paterson leave office prematurely appears to be the matter of his potential successor, the unknown Lt. Gov. Richard Ravitch, who was appointed to the office last year by Paterson in a controversial and legally disputed action.
A whopping 78% of respondents have no opinion of Ravitch, with only 12% having a favorable view of him, and 9% unfavorable. The poll also asked: “Who do you think would more effectively govern New York state until December 31 – David Paterson or Richard Ravitch?” The answer here is Paterson 47%, Ravitch 29%.
From the pollster’s analysis: “Whether it’s mercy, pity or a fear of stepping into the unknown, it runs across all the demographic categories.”
