A new poll by the University of Delaware’s Center for Political Communication shows Delaware remaining a solidly blue state with both Beau and Joe Biden retaining high favorability ratings.
According to the poll, Delaware Attorney General Beau Biden, a Democrat who is making a bid for governor, is viewed favorably by a solid majority of residents.
The poll shows 60 percent of Delawareans view Biden favorably, with 24 having a negative impression.
Majorities in all three Delaware counties rated him favorably, suggesting he could be a formidable candidate in the 2016 gubernatorial election. A September 2013 poll, also conducted by UD, found that 64 percent of Delawareans viewed Beau Biden favorably and 17 percent viewed him unfavorably.
Biden chose not to run for another term as attorney general, citing the need to focus on running for governor. That led Denn, who was viewed as a gubernatorial hopeful to run for Attorney General.
The poll reveals that Governor Jack Markell, also a Democrat, is viewed favorably by 55 percent of Delawareans and unfavorably by 25 percent. That was lower than the figures from a recent Rasmussen poll.
In September 2013, 62 percent of Delawareans viewed him favorably and 18 percent viewed him unfavorably. Markell is not up for re-election, but has struggled with a sluggish economy and took heat for proposals to increase the gas tax and levy a property tax charge for cleaning up the state’s polluted streams.
At the same time, Lt. Gov. Matt Denn has some work to do in raising his profile. Denn, a Democrat who is running for Attorney General in next month’s election, is viewed favorably by 39 percent of Delawareans and unfavorably by 13p ercent , giving him an almost a three- to-one margin among those who provided a rating of him. However, 46 percent of Delawareans said they had never heard of him or could not rate him.
The poll shows that U.S. Sen. Tom Carper, a Democrat, remains the most popular member of Delaware’s Congressional delegation. Sixty-three percent of Delawareans view him favorably, while 16 percent view him unfavorably. Senator Chris Coons, a Democrat who is running for reelection next month, is viewed favorably by 45 percent and unfavorably by 26 percent.
Representative John Carney, another Democrat who is currently running for reelection, is viewed favorably by 49 percent and unfavorably by 17 percent. Favorably ratings for Carper, Coons, and Carney have changed little from September 2013. A separate UD poll shows Coons and Carney comfortably ahead of Republican nominees.,
If the next presidential election were held today, either former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton or Vice President Joe Biden would handily defeat New Jersey Governor Chris Christie in Delaware. Both Biden and Christie are University of Delaware alumni, but if they ran head-to-head in Delaware, Biden would crush Christie, 54 percent to 38 percent.
The Christie administration scandal involving the lane closings on the New Jersey side of the George Washington Bridge in New York City has been widely covered in Philadelphia TV markets.
Most Delawareans hold positive views of both Hilary Clinton and Joe Biden. Sixty-four percent view the Vice President favorably, and 61 percent view Clinton favorably.
Their ratings have changed little from September 2013. In contrast, Christie’s favorability has declined 13 points in the past year, from 57 percent to 44 percent. Still, Delawareans still view Christie more favorably than two other potential Republican presidential contenders. Only 29 percent of Delaware residents view former Florida Governor Jeb Bush favorably, and just 26 percent view Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky favorably.
Click here for more details on the study http://www.udel.edu/cpc/research/fall2014/CPCNatAgenda2014-Ratings.pdf
