Gov. Josh Shapiro remains more popular with Pennsylvania voters than President Donald Trump, according to a poll released Thursday.
Half of Pennsylvania’s registered voters believe Shapiro is doing an “excellent” or “good” job in the state’s highest office, while 44% rate his performance as “fair” or “poor,” the Franklin & Marshall College Poll showed.
Shapiro’s approval rating dipped slightly from five months ago, when 51% of voters thought he was doing a “good” or “excellent” job.
About 39% of voters rated Trump’s performance as “excellent” or “good,” while 61% think he’s doing a “fair” or “poor” job, the poll showed. About 41% of voters thought Trump was doing an “excellent” or “good” job five months ago.
Despite those unfavorable numbers, poll director Berwood Yost wrote, “President Trump’s net approval ratings are better than Barack Obama’s and George Bush’s job approval ratings in Pennsylvania at the same point in their presidencies, although all three incumbents were deeply unpopular.”
Shapiro, a Democrat from Montgomery County, is up for reelection in this year’s pivotal midterm elections. The poll showed him leading his likely Republican challenger, state Treasurer Stacy Garrity of Bradford County, 48% to 28%. About 7% of voters said they planned to vote for someone else, while 17% remain undecided.
Other key findings:
- 44% of voters think Pennsylvania is “on the wrong track,” compared to 39% who believe it’s “headed in the right direction.” The last time a majority of Pennsylvania voters thought the state was headed in the right direction: January 2020.
- 30% of voters cited the economy — including unemployment, housing and real estate costs, and higher gas and utility prices — as the biggest problem facing Pennsylvania. Among those voters, 45% said Democrats are better suited to address the problem, while 25% said Republicans are.
- 55% of voters oppose the methods that Immigration and Customs Enforcement is using to enforce immigration laws, while 45% support them.
- 42% of voters said the Trump administration is doing an “excellent” or “good” dealing with immigration, down from 47% in October.
- 37% of voters think the administration is doing an “excellent” or “good” handling foreign policy matters, down from 42% in October.
- 66% of voters said they had a “great deal” or “fair” amount of trust in the state’s election processes. A majority of Republicans (60%) oppose changing election administration from state to federal control, compared to 63% of independents or members of other parties and 84% of Democrats.