Raleigh, N.C. – If it were possible, President Obama is in even worse shape in West Virginia this month than when PPP last polled the state in September. Now only 28% approve of his job performance, with 63% disapproving, down from 32-62. Of the 45 states in which PPP has measured the president, only Wyoming sees him worse. Because of that, his already daunting deficits to the Republican field looking to replace him have only grown further.
Obama lost the Mountain State by 13 points in 2008, and the poll respondents—likely voters in last week’s gubernatorial election—report having supported McCain by 15. Only one of the five candidates tested against the president fails to achieve that margin, and by just one point.
Mitt Romney performs best, as usual, topping President Obama by 21 points, 55-34, up nine points from 49-37. Romney is followed by Rick Perry’s 16-point lead, 52-36, up five from 49-38; Michele Bachmann’s 15-point lead, 52-37, up six from 48-39; Newt Gingrich’s 15-point lead, 51-36, up ten from only 45-40; and Ron Paul’s 14-point lead, 48-34. Paul was not tested in the previous poll.
West Virginia is a rare state in which all the Republicans are better liked personally than the president, and all the candidates but Perry have improved their favorability ratings in the last month. Gingrich is up 20 points on the margin from 22% favorable and 56% unfavorable to 31-45. Last week’s release showed Gingrich surging into second place in the primary. Romney is up 12 points from 27-41 to 34-36, and Bachmann up seven from 25-44 to 28-40. Perry, meanwhile, is down 14 points from 29-32 to 25-42.
“Republican attacks on Barack Obama weren’t enough to make Bill Maloney Governor,” said Dean Debnam, President of Public Policy Polling. “But they did succeed in making Obama’s already poor standing in the state even worse.”
PPP surveyed 932 likely West Virginia voters from September 30th to October 2nd. The margin of error for the survey is +/-3.2%. 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 …………………………………………………. 28%
Disapprove……………………………………………… 63%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 9%
Q2 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Michele Bachmann?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 28%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 40%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 32%
Q3 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Chris Christie?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 32%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 25%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 43%
Q4 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Newt Gingrich?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 31%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 45%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 25%
Q5 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Ron Paul?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 19%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 47%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 34%
Q6 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Rick Perry?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 25%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 42%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 33%
Q7 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Mitt Romney?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 34%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 36%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 30%
Q8 If the candidates for President next year were
Democrat Barack Obama and Republican
Michele Bachmann, who would you vote for?
Barack Obama………………………………………… 37%
Michele Bachmann ………………………………….. 52%
Undecided………………………………………………. 12%
Q9 If the candidates for President next year were
Democrat Barack Obama and Republican
Chris Christie, who would you vote for?
Barack Obama………………………………………… 34%
Chris Christie ………………………………………….. 53%
Undecided………………………………………………. 13%
Q10 If the candidates for President next year were
Democrat Barack Obama and Republican
Newt Gingrich, who would you vote for?
Barack Obama………………………………………… 36%
Newt Gingrich …………………………………………. 51%
Undecided………………………………………………. 13%
Q11 If the candidates for President next year were
Democrat Barack Obama and Republican Ron
Paul, who would you vote for?
Barack Obama………………………………………… 34%
Ron Paul ………………………………………………… 48%
Undecided………………………………………………. 18%
Q12 If the candidates for President next year were
Democrat Barack Obama and Republican Rick
Perry, who would you vote for?
Barack Obama………………………………………… 36%
Rick Perry ………………………………………………. 52%
Undecided………………………………………………. 12%
Q13 If the candidates for President next year were
Democrat Barack Obama and Republican Mitt
Romney, who would you vote for?
Barack Obama………………………………………… 33%
Mitt Romney……………………………………………. 54%
Undecided………………………………………………. 13%
Q14 Who did you vote for President in 2008?
John McCain…………………………………………… 51%
Barack Obama………………………………………… 36%
Someone else/Don’t remember …………………. 13%
Q15 Would you describe yourself as very liberal,
somewhat liberal, moderate, somewhat
conservative, or very conservative?
Very liberal ……………………………………………… 11%
Somewhat liberal …………………………………….. 14%
Moderate………………………………………………… 25%
Somewhat conservative……………………………. 26%
Very conservative ……………………………………. 23%
Q16 If you are a woman, press 1. If a man, press 2.
Woman ………………………………………………….. 52%
Man……………………………………………………….. 48%
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 ……………………………………………….. 55%
Republican……………………………………………… 35%
Independent/Other…………………………………… 9%
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………………………………………………….. 16%
30 to 45………………………………………………….. 18%
46 to 65………………………………………………….. 38%
Older than 65………………………………………….. 28%
