A new poll released Tuesday shows Illinois Governor Pat Quinn remains unpopular with voters, but next year’s election remains tight between Quinn and any of the four Republican candidates.
The Public Policy Polling (PPP) survey of 557 Illinois voters found Quinn’s approval rating to be abysmal for most candidates seeking reelection, with only 34 percent approving and 60 percent disapproving of the job he’s doing. However, those numbers are trending slightly upward from the where he was last year, when PPP found him at 25-64, making him the least popular governor in the country.
On the Republican side, Bruce Rauner led Quinn’s four challengers with 24 percent backing from likely GOP voters. State Senator Bill Brady was favored by 17 percent of voters, with 14 percent for state treasurer Dan Rutherford and 10 percent for state Senator. Kirk Dillard. Thirty-six percent of Republican voters, however, were undecided on the race.
In a head-to-head match-up, Rutherford was the only Republican ahead of the governor, leading Quinn 41 to 39. The Democrat led Rauner by a 41 to 38 percent margin and tied both Brady and Dillard.
“The Illinois Governor’s race appears to be a toss up,” Dean Debnam, President of Public Policy Polling, said in a statement. “That’s bad for Democrats given the blue leaning nature of the state,, but it could be a lot worse given where Quinn’s approval numbers are.”
The poll also had bad news for Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel. Thirty-six of those surveyed had a favorable opinion of Emanuel, with 46 percent unfavorable and 19 percent unsure.
PPP surveyed 557 Illinois voters from November 22nd to November 25th. The poll has a 4.2 percent margin of error.
