Chris Christie may have avoided personal liability in the now infamous bridge scandal, at least for the moment, but the fiasco is taking a toll on the governor’s standing in New Jersey — especially among Democrats.
Just 46 percent of New Jersey voters have a favorable opinion of Christie, compared to 43 percent who view him unfavorably, according to a new Rutgers-Eagleton Poll released Wednesday. Those numbers are down from 65 percent favorability just before a landslide re-election that Christie touted as a testament to his bipartisan record — a record he would have pointed to in a possible bid for president in 2016.
The reason for the drop? A 26-point decline among Democrats, according to the poll. The Republican governor still holds 53 percent approval rating, although that measure is down 15 points since November.
Rutgers notes that two-thirds of the poll was completed before new allegations made by Hoboken Mayor Dawn Zimmer that federal relief funds for Superstorm Sandy were withheld from her city because she failed to support a development project favored by Christie allies.