Greg Hinz on Politics
I'd take this one with a pound or two of salt, but a poll that's been following Gov. Bruce Rauner for a while now has him getting his worst job-performance ratings ever.
According to the survey by an out-of-state polling firm for The Insider, a political newsletter, just 33 percent of likely 2016 voters surveyed now approve of the job the Republican governor is doing. A whopping 57 percent disapprove.
As recently as January, Rauner's disapproval rating was only 51.6 percent. So, if the survey's findings are accurate, Rauner's numbers are headed south. He's particularly weak among independents: Just 30 percent approve of the job he's done so far.
Now, Insider publisher David Ormsby is a former aide to House Speaker Mike Madigan, Rauner's bitter foe. And as Rauner spokeswoman Catherine Kelly says, "Polls go up and polls go down. Gov. Rauner is 100 percent focused on working with both parties to get a grand compromise that will produce a balanced budget along with significant structural reforms that will put Illinois back on a path to prosperity."
I'd also add that every poll I've heard of that asks about Madigan finds him at least as far in the red.
But the problem is, Madigan's name never appears on the ballot outside of his own Southwest Side district, while Rauner's does. And more than one Springfield hand believes that the longer the budget standoff continues, the greater the odds that voters will blame the guy at the top.
Some sources say they may be making a little progress in Springfield, especially on a patchwork plan to fund grade and high schools. But others say it's a fake, and after today there are just seven days left before the Legislature is scheduled to adjourn on May 31.
The aforementioned poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.75 percent.
The Insider's latest survey was conducted by an out-of-state polling firm. A previous version of this post had reported that the survey was handled by Ogden & Fry, a Chicago-based pollster.
Above is from: http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/20160524/BLOGS02/160529936/rauners-approval-rating-sinks-to-record-low
