State approves of governor
By Baylee Molloy | September 15, 2011A statewide poll released yesterday by Quinnipiac University showed high approval ratings for Gov. Bob McDonnell along with other Virginia politicians. McDonnell's job approval rating stands at 61 percent with 21 percent disapproval, according to the poll. Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute, said the University conducts polls for seven states: Connecticut, Florida, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia. Among those states, "McDonnell's are the best approval ratings that a governor has." McDonnell is not only popular among Republican voters but among Democratic voters as well, Brown said. Kyle Kondik, director of communications at the University Center for Politics, said he does not think the poll results are surprising because McDonnell has enjoyed a comfortable time as governor. The unemployment rate in Virginia is currently 6.1 percent - 3 percent lower than the national rate, according to the Virginia Employment Commission. "A combination of a low unemployment and low controversy, I'd say there are a lot of things going his way," Kondik said. The approval ratings are not only high for McDonnell, but also for four other state officials included in the Quinnipiac poll. U.S.
