Quinnipiac Poll Finds Kasich in Good Shape for 2014
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- With a commanding lead among men, Gov. John Kasich leads likely Democratic challengers in an early look at the 2014 governor’s race, 46% to 37% over Cuyahoga County Executive Ed Fitzgerald and 45% to 38% percent over U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray, according to a newly released Quinnipiac University poll.
The Republican governor’s margins remain virtually unchanged from the results of a Feb. 28 survey by the independent Quinnipiac University.
In today’s survey, Gov. Kasich leads Fitzgerald 51%-32% among men, while women are divided 41%–41%. Kasich tops Cordray 52%–34% among men, while women go 43% for Cordray and 39% for the incumbent.
“In a state where self-described Democrats outnumber Republicans 35%–27%, Kasich seems to be in reasonably good shape as he looks ahead to the 2014 gubernatorial election,” said Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. “The fact that he leads his two potential Democratic opponents by 20 and 17 points respectively among the key independent voting bloc is a good indication that he starts the campaign with the voting public seeing him positively.
But, Brown said, the large gender gap remains and "at this point in this race seems a bit larger than normal.”
Ohio voters approve 52%–34%t of the job Kasich is doing and give him a 46%–29% favorability rating.
For Cordray, 66% of voters don’t know enough about him to form an opinion. For Fitzgerald, 76% don’t know enough.
“These numbers indicate that Fitzgerald and Cordray are not well-known to voters,” Brown added.
“One bad sign for Kasich is that he does not hit 50% in the reelection matchups or in the general question of whether he deserves reelection.”
Kasich deserves reelection, Ohio voters say 46%–37%, including 51%–35% among independent voters.
In the Fitzgerald-Kasich matchup, the governor leads 86%–2 percent among Republicans and 48 – 28 percent among independent voters, while Democrats go to Fitzgerald 77 – 10 percent. Against Cordray, Kasich leads 88 – 4 percent among Republicans and 47 – 30 percent among independent voters, while losing Democrats 78 – 9 percent.
Kasich seems to have something of a moderate ideological image: 26% say he is too conservative, while 10% say he is too liberal and 47% say he is “about right.”
Underpinning Kasich’s early strength is a generally positive review from voters about his handling of the economy, 49%–41% approval. A total of 38% of voters rate Ohio’s economy as “excellent” or “good,” the highest scores ever. Another 60% say the economy is “not so good” or “poor.”
From April 10 – 15, Quinnipiac University surveyed 1,138 registered voters with a margin of error of +/- 2.9 percentage points. Live interviewers called land lines and cell phones.
The Quinnipiac University Poll, directed by Douglas Schwartz, Ph.D., conducts public opinion surveys in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Florida, Ohio, Virginia and the nation as a public service and for research.
Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
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