Raleigh, N.C. – President Obama’s approval rating has dropped eight points since PPP last polled Maine in March, but he has actually improved against his potential foes, even his toughest challenger in this region and nationally, Mitt Romney.
47% of Maine voters approve and 48% disapprove of the president’s job performance, down from a 51-44 margin seven months ago. But as almost everywhere, the Republicans are even less popular. With a -11 net favorability rating, Romney is the best liked of the Republican bunch, followed by Herman Cain’s -14, and then in the distant background, Michele Bachmann’s -32, Ron Paul’s -33, Newt Gingrich’s -38, and Rick Perry’s shocking -50 (16-66). So the president leads them all by at least 11 points in a state he won by about 17 three years ago.
Obama tops Romney, 49-38, an improvement from only 49-41 in the previous poll. The others trail by at least as much as John McCain did: Cain by 17 (54-37); Paul by 19 (53-34); Gingrich by 20 (55-35), down from 16 (53-37) in March; Bachmann also by 20 (55-35); and Perry by 21 (55-34).
Though 17% of his party disapproves of his handling of his duties, and 13% of Republicans approve, and independents disapprove by a three-point spread, Obama improves on all those marks against every single GOP foe. He earns 13% (against Romney) to 19% (versus Paul and Bachmann) of the Republican vote and cedes only 8% (Gingrich and Perry) to 11% (Paul) of his own party, while winning independents by margins of 13 (Romney) to 34 points (Cain).
“Barack Obama probably doesn’t need to worry about actually winning Maine,” said Dean Debnam, President of Public Policy Polling. “But his being under water there in his approval numbers speaks to the difficulties he’s having even in states that he won by wide margins in 2008.”
PPP surveyed 673 Maine voters from October 28th to 31st. The margin of error for the survey is +/-3.8%. This poll was not paid for or authorized by any campaign or political organization. PPP surveys are conducted through automated telephone interviews. PPP is a Democratic polling company, but polling expert Nate Silver of the New York Times found that its surveys in 2010 actually exhibited a slight bias toward Republican candidates.
Topline results are below. Full results, including crosstabs, can be found here.
Q1 Do you approve or disapprove of President
Barack Obama’s job performance?
Approve …………………………………………………. 47%
Disapprove……………………………………………… 48%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 5%
Q2 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Michele Bachmann?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 23%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 55%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 22%
Q3 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Herman Cain?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 32%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 46%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 22%
Q4 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Newt Gingrich?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 25%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 63%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 11%
Q5 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Ron Paul?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 24%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 57%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 18%
Q6 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Rick Perry?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 16%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 66%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 18%
Q7 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Mitt Romney?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 38%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 49%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 13%
Q8 If the candidates for President next year were
Democrat Barack Obama and Republican
Michele Bachmann, who would you vote for?
Barack Obama………………………………………… 55%
Michele Bachmann ………………………………….. 35%
Undecided………………………………………………. 10%
Q9 If the candidates for President next year were
Democrat Barack Obama and Republican
Herman Cain, who would you vote for?
Barack Obama………………………………………… 54%
Herman Cain…………………………………………… 37%
Undecided………………………………………………. 9%
Q10 If the candidates for President next year were
Democrat Barack Obama and Republican
Newt Gingrich, who would you vote for?
Barack Obama………………………………………… 55%
Newt Gingrich …………………………………………. 35%
Undecided………………………………………………. 9%
Q11 If the candidates for President next year were
Democrat Barack Obama and Republican Ron
Paul, who would you vote for?
Barack Obama………………………………………… 53%
Ron Paul ………………………………………………… 34%
Undecided………………………………………………. 13%
Q12 If the candidates for President next year were
Democrat Barack Obama and Republican Rick
Perry, who would you vote for?
Barack Obama………………………………………… 55%
Rick Perry ………………………………………………. 34%
Undecided………………………………………………. 11%
Q13 If the candidates for President next year were
Democrat Barack Obama and Republican Mitt
Romney, who would you vote for?
Barack Obama………………………………………… 49%
Mitt Romney……………………………………………. 38%
Undecided………………………………………………. 12%
Q14 Who did you vote for President in 2008?
John McCain…………………………………………… 38%
Barack Obama………………………………………… 57%
Someone else/Don’t remember …………………. 6%
Q15 Would you describe yourself as very liberal,
somewhat liberal, moderate, somewhat
conservative, or very conservative?
Very liberal ……………………………………………… 11%
Somewhat liberal …………………………………….. 23%
Moderate………………………………………………… 33%
Somewhat conservative……………………………. 19%
Very conservative ……………………………………. 14%
Q16 If you are a woman, press 1. If a man, press 2.
Woman ………………………………………………….. 53%
Man……………………………………………………….. 47%
Q17 If you are a Democrat, press 1. If a Republican,
press 2. If you are an independent or identify
with another party, press 3.
Democrat ……………………………………………….. 41%
Republican……………………………………………… 35%
Independent/Other…………………………………… 24%
Q18 If you are white, press 1. If other, press 2.
White …………………………………………………….. 94%
Other……………………………………………………… 6%
Q19 If you are 18 to 29 years old, press 1. If 30 to
45, press 2. If 46 to 65, press 3. If you are
older than 65, press 4.
18 to 29………………………………………………….. 8%
30 to 45………………………………………………….. 23%
46 to 65………………………………………………….. 44%
Older than 65………………………………………….. 24%
