Christie, Obama approval ratings drop in New Jersey

Gov. Christie's job approval rating dropped to 46 percent among New Jersey voters, one of his lowest, in a Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday.

At the same time, President Obama's approval rating hit an all-time low in New Jersey of 41 percent among registered voters, according to a Monmouth University/Asbury Park Press poll also released Wednesday.

In both instances, the polls said the drops were driven by declines among women. While 51 percent of men surveyed in the Quinnipiac poll approved of Christie, among women 43 percent approved and 48 percent disapproved.

Those ratings helped lower Christie's approval rating to 46 percent, nearly a year after the Republican governor won reelection with 60 percent of the vote. Christie's only lower approval rating in the poll was 44 percent in June 2011.

Among New Jersey Republican voters surveyed in the poll, 82 percent approved of Christie, while 70 percent of Democrats disapproved.

The poll also found former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, a Democrat, leading Christie by 10 points in New Jersey in a hypothetical presidential matchup. Among New Jersey women, Clinton's lead grew to 20 points.

Clinton's lead over Christie was narrower than over other Republicans tested in the Quinnipiac poll, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and U.S. Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky.

The Quinnipiac poll of 1,475 registered voters was conducted from Sept. 25 to 29, with a margin of error of 2.6 percentage points.

In the Monmouth poll on the president's approval rating, 45 percent of New Jersey adults surveyed approved of Obama's job performance, but among registered voters, 41 percent approved - his lowest rating in the statewide poll during his time in office.

In June, 45 percent of registered New Jersey voters surveyed by the poll approved of the president's job performance.

The poll attributed the decline to women, 44 percent of whom approved of Obama and 50 percent of whom disapproved. In June, 50 percent of women in New Jersey surveyed approved of Obama, while 46 percent disapproved.

In one area of improvement for Obama, the poll found an increase in approval of the Affordable Care Act, with 45 percent of poll respondents favorable and 46 percent unfavorable. Several months earlier, 42 percent of poll respondents had a favorable opinion compared to 52 percent unfavorable. The Monmouth poll also surveyed New Jerseyans on the state's two Democratic U.S. senators.

Positive job ratings have declined for Cory Booker, who is seeking reelection in a race against Republican Jeff Bell after winning a special election last year to fill the late Frank R. Lautenberg's seat.

Forty-two percent of registered voters surveyed by the poll approved of Booker, compared with 23 percent who disapproved; in June, 48 percent of voters approved and 25 percent disapproved.

The poll found Robert Menendez's ratings to be relatively stable, with 45 percent of registered voters approving of his job performance and 30 percent disapproving. The poll of 802 adults, including 680 registered voters, was conducted from Sept. 17 to 21, with a margin of error of 3.5 percentage points. The margin of error for findings on registered voters is 3.8 percentage points.