Public Policy Polling

Deal unpopular, still leads opponents

Raleigh, N.C. – PPP continues to find Nathan Deal with pretty mediocre approval numbers. Only 36% of voters approve of him to 41% who disapprove. That's nearly identical to the 37/40 spread we found for him in early December. Nevertheless Deal looks like a favorite for reelection. He would lead Jason Carter 46/38 and John Barrow and Kasim Reed 48/38 in hypothetical match ups. This may be a situation where Deal's unpopularity would let a strong Democratic candidate make the race competitive, but it would be hard for a challenger to actually get to 50%.

“Nathan Deal isn’t very popular,” said Dean Debnam, President of Public Policy Polling. “But the Republican lean of the state makes him a favorite for reelection anyway.”

Our newest look at Saxby Chambliss' approval numbers probably confirms that he made the right choice by deciding to retire.  Only 47% of Republicans are happy with the job he's doing to 31% who disapprove. It's hard to fight off a serious primary challenge when your numbers are under 50% in your party. Chambliss' overall approval is 35/41. Georgians aren't real big on any of their politicians- Johnny Isakson comes in at 37/39 and Barack Obama's at 45/53 in the state.

Georgia Miscellany

-PPP continues to find Nathan Deal with pretty mediocre approval numbers. Only 36% of voters approve of him to 41% who disapprove. That's nearly identical to the 37/40 spread we found for him in early December. Nevertheless Deal looks like a favorite for reelection. He would lead Jason Carter 46/38 and John Barrow and Kasim Reed 48/38 in hypothetical match ups. This may be a situation where Deal's unpopularity would let a strong Democratic candidate make the race competitive, but it would be hard for a challenger to actually get to 50%.

-Our newest look at Saxby Chambliss' approval numbers probably confirms that he made the right choice by deciding to retire.  Only 47% of Republicans are happy with the job he's doing to 31% who disapprove. It's hard to fight off a serious primary challenge when your numbers are under 50% in your party. Chambliss' overall approval is 35/41. Georgians aren't real big on any of their politicians- Johnny Isakson comes in at 37/39 and Barack Obama's at 45/53 in the state.

-The Falcons aren't making much progress in the court of public opinion about their need for a new stadium. In December only 15% of voters thought they needed one and after scads of press coverage in the last couple months that's only gone up to 20%. There's only 17% support for any taxpayer funding for a new stadium with 69% of voters opposed to it.

GA Republicans split on secession, Deal vulnerable

Raleigh, N.C. – Following on Tuesday’s release which showed that 18% of voters nationally, including a quarter of Republicans, support their state seceding as a consequence of President Obama’s re-election, an even higher 26% of Georgians are in favor of that idea.  That includes 42% of the state’s Republicans—the same proportion who are opposed.

Nathan Deal won the Georgia gubernatorial election easily over a former governor in 2010, a wave year for Republicans.  But he may find it tougher to hold onto his seat in two years.  Only 37% of Georgians approve of his job performance, and 40% disapprove.  He starts out with leads against three potential opponents, but all three are much less known to voters than the incumbent is.

Deal leads Rep. John Barrow by four points (44-40), Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed by seven (47-40), and State Sen. Jason Carter by eight (46-38).  But only 35% to 63% of voters have an opinion about the Democrats on a personal level.

Georgia Miscellany

-Georgia Governor Nathan Deal could be vulnerable in 2014, given the right Democratic opponent. Only 37% of voters in the state approve of the job he's doing to 40% who disapprove. He leads all of the Democrats we tested against him but polls in the mid 40s- it's 44/40 against John Barrow, 47/40 against Kasim Reed, and 46/38 against Jason Carter. His average lead of 6 points against that trio is far smaller than the average advantage of 15 points we showed for Saxby Chambliss against them in our Senate numbers on Tuesday. Deal doesn't have the primary worries Chambliss does, but there's a greater chance of him struggling in a general election.

-Georgia voters continue to be strongly opposed to gay marriage. Only 27% of voters think it should be legal to 65% who believe it should be illegal. Nevertheless 57% support either gay marriage or civil unions to only 40% who think there should be no legal recognition for same sex couples. Even among Republicans there's 44% support for at least instituting civil unions. These numbers back up what we've found nationally over the course of the year which is that there's still a hang up with many voters about the term 'marriage' but at this point there's broad support for same sex couples at least having the same legal rights as heterosexuals.

-We took a look at some sports issues on this poll. Georgia fans outnumber Georgia Tech ones 40/17. Only 15% of voters in the state think the Falcons need a new stadium to 70% who think they do not. Just 12% say they would support any taxpayer funding to give the Falcons a new home, while 75% are opposed to it. Chipper Jones has a 57/11 favorability rating in the state-given the tepid feelings in the state toward Governor Deal and Senators Chambliss and Isakson, maybe he has a future in elected office- he's a heck of a lot more popular.