More than half of Mainers disapprove of Gov. Paul LePage’s job performance, according to a poll released Tuesday.
The poll, conducted by Portland-based Critical Insights, finds that 54 percent of those surveyed say they disapproved of how LePage, a Republican, is handling the job less than five months into his tenure. Thirty-one percent said they approved of LePage’s job performance. Fifteen percent were undecided.
LePage’s approval ratings are in line with those observed for Gov. John Baldacci, a Democrat, before he left office. In that 2010 survey, 34 percent approved of Baldacci’s job performance while 55 percent disapproved.
The Critical Insights poll surveyed 600 Mainers between May 5 and 9. The poll has a 4 percent margin of error.
The poll also asked whether respondents would vote differently if they could vote again in the gubernatorial election. Seventy percent said they would vote for the same person. About 25 percent said they would vote for someone different.
Of those who said they would vote for someone else, 45 percent said they would vote for independent Eliot Cutler, 15 percent said they would vote for Democrat Libby Mitchell and 4 percent said they would vote for LePage. Twenty-four percent said they were unsure and 5 percent declined to answer.
Of those surveyed, 33 percent said they were registered Democrats, 33 percent were registered Republicans, 26 percent were independent voters and 7 percent didn’t state a party affiliation.