August 18, 2008 08:50 PM UTC

Half-Good or Half-Bad?

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• by: Colorado Pols

As The Rocky Mountain News reports:

Gov. Bill Ritter remains popular among a large hunk of Coloradans more than a year and a half into his first term, according to a Rocky Mountain News/ CBS4 News poll.

Ritter received a favorable rating of 50 percent vs. 26 percent unfavorable in a statewide survey of 500 registered voters from Aug. 11 to 13.

Ritter rode a wave of popularity after his election, successfully pushing a number of bipartisan renewable-energy bills during the 2007 legislative session and scoring approval ratings of 70 percent in other polls last year. The latest count, by Republican pollster Public Opinion Strategies in consultation with RBI Strategies, a firm that generally works with Democratic candidates, shows he still has a 2-to-1 ratio of opinion in his favor.

But the thumbs-up from just half of respondents represents a trend of voter skepticism toward elected officials that can be seen at all levels, RBI director of research Craig Hughes said.

So, is a 50% approval rating good or bad? Obviously, Ritter wasn’t going to maintain his earlier high levels, but perhaps more important is why his approval ratings are dropping. Is it just a natural decline, or is there a specific reason? The poll answers vary, but this comment is what Ritter should really be worried about:

Tom Bennett, a 61-year-old former liquor industry worker from Morrison, said he had an open mind about Ritter after his election but since has grown increasingly unhappy with him. The governor has done nothing to improve the state’s educational system and could drive oil companies out of Colorado with some of his policies, Bennett said.

“I’m open to anybody, but since he first took office . . . nothing seems to have gone right,” he said.

If Ritter’s approval ratings continue to drop for this reason – the perception that he isn’t doing enough for Colorado – then he’s going to be under a lot of pressure to get something significant passed in the next legislative session. And if he doesn’t, then 2010 is going to be rough.

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