Gov. Martin O?Malley?s approval rating has declined among Maryland voters, but those voters overwhelmingly support the governor?s plan to bring slot machines to the state, according to a new statewide poll released Wednesday.
The poll taken last week by Gonzales research and Marketing also found widespread support for the income tax increases O?Malley has proposed for corporations and the wealthy and for the special session he has called, and opposition to the increase in the sales tax he?s seeking.
In the telephone survey, O?Malley?s job approval rating is at 46 percent, slipping 6 points since March. His disapproval rating was up 10 points to 31 percent. The poll said 40 percent of the respondents think things are moving in the wrong direction, up 15 points since January.
“That?s a huge shift and not in the right direction,” pollster Patrick Gonzales said.
Almost the entire change in the governor?s approval rating was caused by a sharp drop in support among Republican voters, two-thirds of whom now disapprove of him, almost double the number in March. Among Democrats, 61 percent approve of the job he?s doing.
Gonzales said, “I thought there was a possibility that his negatives would be higher, and his approval would lower,” given the taxes he?s proposing.
Among independents, who made up 10 percent of the respondents, almost half (49 percent) approve of the job O?Malley is doing, but half (52 percent) also say the state is heading in the wrong direction.
The telephone survey of 893 regular voters has a margin of error of 3.5 percent overall, with higher margins among subgroups.
O?Malley has majority support among blacks, women, and residents of Baltimore City and the Washington suburbs. A majority of voters on the Eastern Shore disapprove of the job he?s doing.
O?Malley spokesman Rick Abbruzzese said: “Overall, the poll shows overwhelming support for the governor?s plan to move ahead and address the structural deficit,” including support for slots, “tax reform” and “closing corporate loopholes.”
Abbruzzese said the drop in O?Malley?s approval is no surprise, “but leaders lead when they have to make difficult decision,” noting how Virginia Gov. Mark Warner had suffered lower ratings when he was pushing a tax program through.
Gonzales said he was surprised to find the highest support for slot machine gambling ? 59 percent ? in five years of polling on the subject. He thoughtthe combination of tax increase proposals with slots would hurt support for gambling.
Gonzales, who?s been polling in Maryland for decades, said he was particularly surprised “at the sheer overwhelming number of people that want slots to go to referendum.”
More than four out of five Marylanders ? 84 percent ? back a referendum on the gambling issue.
Here are results for other O?Malley proposals:
» 60 percent say calling a special session is the right approach.
» 63 percent oppose raising sales tax from 5 percent to 6 percent
» 58 percent support increase income tax for individuals earning more than $150,000, and families over $200,000.
» 59 percent support raising corporate income tax from 7 to 8 percent.
