One term nerd, indeed
Mark Schauer, photo by Anne C. Savage, special to Eclectablog
Public Policy Polling has the first Michigan gubernatorial poll out since Mark Schauer declared his candidacy and the news is very, very bad for incumbent governor Rick Snyder. According to PPP, Mark Schauer leads Snyder by four points, a huge margin for someone who is relatively unknown outside of the 7th Congressional District where he once served as Congressman.
PPP’s first poll of the Michigan Gubernatorial race since Mark Schauer’s official entry finds the Democrat leading incumbent Rick Snyder 42/38. PPP’s polling of this match up over the last six months has been very consistent- in March Schauer also led Snyder by 4 points and in December he had a 5 point advantage.Schauer’s initial lead has a lot more to do with Snyder than it does with himself. Even after his official candidacy announcement, he has just 38% statewide name recognition. But Snyder continues to be one of the most unpopular Governors in the country with only 40% of voters approving of him to 52% who disapprove. He’s at 40/51 with independents and Democrats (78% disapproval) dislike him a good deal more than Republicans (68% approval) like him.
Schauer’s low name recognition at this point means that things could actually get worse for Snyder. The undecideds for Governor voted for Barack Obama by a 16 point margin, and only 22% approve of Snyder to 64% who disapprove. Those are folks likely to move into the Schauer camp once he becomes better known.
Also worth noting is that people who disapprove of Snyder’s signing of Right to Work legislation outnumber those who approve by a solid 10-point margin.
In this case, worse is better, at least for the citizens of Michigan who will likely vote him out of office in a little less than a year and half. It’s clear that Snyder’s portrayal of himself as a “tough nerd” is absurd and Michiganders know it. According to PPP’s polling, only a third of Michiganders think he’s a “tough nerd” and nearly half think he’s not.
Rick Snyder can pal around with the wealthy elite on Mackinac Island all he wants and he can bow to and serve his corporate pals all he wants and he can continue enable his corporatist Republican allies in the legislature for the next 18 months. All it will do is to prove to the voters of Michigan whose interests he serves. Hint: if you’re not a corporate executive, your interests are “not on his agenda”.
See you on the campaign trail, Governor Snyder. I look forward to working tirelessly to see that your opponent Mark Schauer widens his lead from four points to forty over the next year and a half.
And I’m not alone.
[Rick Snyder caricature by DonkeyHotey from photos by Anne C. Savage for Eclectablog]
