Blog Archive

Bad news for Ohio Governor Bob Taft. His “bold” move to increase taxes to fix the budget shortfall has not gone over well. According to a Ohio Poll conducted by the Institute for Policy Research at the University of Cincinnati his approval rating has fallen markedly since September of last year:

Governor Bob Taft?s approval rating has fallen markedly since the last time Ohioans were asked to evaluate their governor in September 2002. In the latest Ohio Poll, 40 percent of state residents approve of Taft?s performance as governor, 48 percent disapprove and 12 percent neither approve nor disapprove. Taft?s approval rating is down 26 percentage points since the last Ohio Poll. Future Ohio Polls will be necessary in order to determine whether this survey result is a temporary blip, or indicative of a longer-term shift in Taft?s approval rating in Ohio.

And if that wasn’t depressing enough for Governor Taft, it gets worse:

Taft?s approval rating is the lowest rating for an Ohio governor since former Governor Richard Celeste?s approval rating of 36 percent, recorded during the summer of 1983. Taft?s disapproval rating is the highest recorded for any governor by The Ohio Poll, dating back to 1983.

It should be interesting to see how these numbers look next month and if they have any impact on policy as the budget process continues. Taft, who is term limited, is said to be looking for a legacy. I am pretty sure this is not what he had in mind.