Jerry Brown has strong approval rating in poll
Wyatt Buchanan, Chronicle Sacramento Bureau
San Francisco Chronicle March 21, 2011 04:00 AM
This article appeared on page A - 10 of the San Francisco Chronicle
03/22/11
Jeff Chiu / AP
Gov. Jerry Brown's ratings may give him momentum if there is a special election to extend taxes.
(03-21) 04:00 PDT Sacramento - --
After nearly three months in office, Gov. Jerry Brown's job performance is winning the approval of California voters by more than a 2-to-1 ratio, while the state Legislature continues to receive low marks, according to a Field Poll released today.
Brown has the approval of 48 percent of registered voters who were surveyed; 21 percent disapprove of his performance so far. Nearly a third, 31 percent, have no opinion.
"I think he's in a fairly strong position. Most of the things he's said to voters about the deficit and how he wants to deal with it is in sync with what most voters want," said Mark DiCamillo, director of the Field Poll, adding, "It's the most the governor could hope for at this point."
The governor is in the midst of working to persuade lawmakers at the Capitol, especially Republicans, to support his budget plan and his call for a special election in June that would allow voters to decide whether to extend and increase some taxes for five years. The taxes would help close the state's $26.6 billion deficit.
In the survey, 40 percent of registered Republicans said they have no opinion of how Brown is doing. DiCamillo said among those are voters withholding judgment due to the opposition to Brown's budget plan by Republicans in the Legislature.
He said the Republican opposition "throws up a warning flag" for Republican voters, even if Brown is "doing things some of them might approve of."
Last week, the Legislature approved about $14 billion in cuts, fund shifts and other internal borrowing, and Brown has said that without the taxes, worth another $14 billion, cuts would have to be doubled. Saying he wanted to "check in" with voters, Brown released an Internet video late Sunday in which he implored Californians to let him and their legislators know whether they want a special election.
"I don't think it should be done without your voice," Brown said, explaining that he does not want to make further cuts. "This is a matter that's too big, too irreversible to leave just to those we've elected," he added.
Gil Duran, Brown's spokesman, said the poll numbers show voters believe the governor is fulfilling his campaign promises.
"He's focusing on what's most important, he's working across party lines and he's trying to deliver a balanced budget that's a mix of deep cuts and tax extensions," Duran said. "People seem to be responding positively because the governor they have is the governor they voted for."
DiCamillo said Brown's approval rating gives him momentum if there is a special election. A month before a May 2009 special election to extend the same taxes, then-Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger had just a 33 percent approval rating, while 55 percent disapproved.
"People were just really tuning (Schwarzenegger) out," he said, whereas Brown has political capital and is still in his "honeymoon period," so voters are willing to hear him out.
Voters' opinions of elected lawmakers continue to be low, with just 16 percent approving of how they do their jobs and 70 percent disapproving. Fourteen percent have no opinion.
The Legislature's approval rating has ranged between 10 and 18 percent in Field Polls since September 2008, when the national financial crisis began in earnest and state revenues plummeted.
DiCamillo said the Legislature's approval rating "fell off a cliff" when the financial crisis began and has not recovered because "they haven't tried to do anything new or different to adapt to that new environment" and instead have relied on budget solutions that push the problem into the next year.
There also is a bit of optimism in the poll among voters, though it is muted. More voters think California is headed in the right direction than at any time since December 2007. However, that number is just 26 percent, and 64 percent still believe the state is on the wrong track. The negative number also is the lowest since 2007.
The poll surveyed 898 registered voters between Feb. 28 and March 14. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.4 percentage points.
Brown has the approval of 48 percent of registered voters who were surveyed; 21 percent disapprove of his performance so far. Nearly a third, 31 percent, have no opinion.
"I think he's in a fairly strong position. Most of the things he's said to voters about the deficit and how he wants to deal with it is in sync with what most voters want," said Mark DiCamillo, director of the Field Poll, adding, "It's the most the governor could hope for at this point."
The governor is in the midst of working to persuade lawmakers at the Capitol, especially Republicans, to support his budget plan and his call for a special election in June that would allow voters to decide whether to extend and increase some taxes for five years. The taxes would help close the state's $26.6 billion deficit.
In the survey, 40 percent of registered Republicans said they have no opinion of how Brown is doing. DiCamillo said among those are voters withholding judgment due to the opposition to Brown's budget plan by Republicans in the Legislature.
He said the Republican opposition "throws up a warning flag" for Republican voters, even if Brown is "doing things some of them might approve of."
Last week, the Legislature approved about $14 billion in cuts, fund shifts and other internal borrowing, and Brown has said that without the taxes, worth another $14 billion, cuts would have to be doubled. Saying he wanted to "check in" with voters, Brown released an Internet video late Sunday in which he implored Californians to let him and their legislators know whether they want a special election.
"I don't think it should be done without your voice," Brown said, explaining that he does not want to make further cuts. "This is a matter that's too big, too irreversible to leave just to those we've elected," he added.
Gil Duran, Brown's spokesman, said the poll numbers show voters believe the governor is fulfilling his campaign promises.
"He's focusing on what's most important, he's working across party lines and he's trying to deliver a balanced budget that's a mix of deep cuts and tax extensions," Duran said. "People seem to be responding positively because the governor they have is the governor they voted for."
DiCamillo said Brown's approval rating gives him momentum if there is a special election. A month before a May 2009 special election to extend the same taxes, then-Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger had just a 33 percent approval rating, while 55 percent disapproved.
"People were just really tuning (Schwarzenegger) out," he said, whereas Brown has political capital and is still in his "honeymoon period," so voters are willing to hear him out.
Voters' opinions of elected lawmakers continue to be low, with just 16 percent approving of how they do their jobs and 70 percent disapproving. Fourteen percent have no opinion.
The Legislature's approval rating has ranged between 10 and 18 percent in Field Polls since September 2008, when the national financial crisis began in earnest and state revenues plummeted.
DiCamillo said the Legislature's approval rating "fell off a cliff" when the financial crisis began and has not recovered because "they haven't tried to do anything new or different to adapt to that new environment" and instead have relied on budget solutions that push the problem into the next year.
There also is a bit of optimism in the poll among voters, though it is muted. More voters think California is headed in the right direction than at any time since December 2007. However, that number is just 26 percent, and 64 percent still believe the state is on the wrong track. The negative number also is the lowest since 2007.
The poll surveyed 898 registered voters between Feb. 28 and March 14. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.4 percentage points.
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