Gov. Phil Murphy’s favorability rating has taken a nosedive since he won reelection last November, according to the last Rutgers-Eagleton Poll, released Tuesday ahead of his budget address.
Only 33% of New Jerseyans now have a favorable impression of the governor (down from 50% in November 2021), while 38% have an unfavorable one.
The poll numbers, however, don’t seem to add up.
The governor continues to enjoy a positive overall job rating approval — 49% approve vs. 46% who disapprove — and gets positive marks on the pandemic. He is criticized when it comes to taxes and affordability.
Still, the overall favorability rating is the most noteworthy, said Ashley Koning, the director of the Eagleton Center of Public Interest Polling at Rutgers University.
“This marks the first time since Gov. Murphy took office that more New Jerseyans are unfavorable toward him than favorable,” she said. “His current job approval and favorability numbers are reminiscent of the start of his first term, marking a clear end to his pandemic-induced ratings bump, as both the state and politics attempt to return to some sort of normal.”
On his first report card of his second term, Murphy remains a “C” student, so to speak. A look at three key areas:
Overall
- A: 11%
- B: 28%
- C: 24%
- D: 15%
- F: 19%
Handling of pandemic
- A: 30%
- B: 22%
- C: 13%
- D: 10%
- F: 25%
Taxes, cost of living, affordability
- A: 4%
- B: 15%
- C: 21%
- D: 15%
- F: 41%
The results are from a statewide poll of 1,044 adults contacted by live interviewers on landlines and cell phones from Feb. 25-March 4. The full sample has a margin of error of +/-3.5 percentage points.
To view the complete report, click here.
