On Thursday, Protect Our Care released a new survey conducted with Public Policy Polling in the key battleground states of Michigan, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin on voter attitudes towards Trump’s handling of the coronavirus. News coverage of POC’s polling reinforced the fact that majorities of voters in these key 2020 states disapprove of Trump’s handling of the coronavirus crisis, trust their governors far more and oppose relaxing social distancing and recent protests to end stay-at-home orders.
Coverage of Protect Our Care’s Polling:
The Hill: EXCLUSIVE: Voters In Swing States Trust Governors Over Trump On Reopening Economy, Poll Finds. “The president’s approval ratings in North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin are 46 percent, 44 percent and 45 percent, respectively, in this poll, while his disapproval numbers stand at 49 percent, 52 percent and 48 percent. PPP surveyed more than 1,200 voters in each state on behalf of Protect Our Care, a group devoted to defending the 2010 Affordable Care Act, also known as ObamaCare. “What I think we’ve seen is that President Trump can’t bullshit his way through this pandemic. You have to show genuine competency, genuine leadership and genuine empathy,” said Brad Woodhouse, the executive director of Protect Our Care.” [The Hill, 4/23/20]
NBC News: Trump’s Coronavirus Approval Rating Underwater In Key States, Surveys Find. “New surveys out Thursday show President Donald Trump’s approval rating for his handling of the coronavirus pandemic is underwater among voters in four critical states this election while state governors receive high marks for their responses to the virus. By and large, these key voters also oppose protests against stay-at-home orders and efforts to relax social distancing measures. The polling, conducted by the progressive firm, Public Policy Polling, on behalf of Protect Our Care — a left-of-center health care advocacy group — finds that 45 percent of voters in Michigan, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin approve of Trump’s management of the crisis while 50 percent disapprove on average. The governors of those states, in contrast, receive a net approval rating for their handling of the pandemic that’s 32 percentage points higher than the president’s with 58 percent approving and 31 percent disapproving.” [NBC News, 4/23/20]
VICE News: New Polls In 5 Swing States Are Looking Scary For Trump. “Biden is up 51%-44% in both Michigan and Pennsylvania, 50%-45% in Wisconsin, and 49%-46% in North Carolina, according to polls conducted by the Democratic firm Public Policy Polling for the liberal healthcare group Protect Our Care. Those polls also found a huge trust deficit between Trump and the states’ Democratic governors on how to handle the coronavirus. In Michigan, voters said by 57%-37% that they trusted Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) more than Trump on the question of who they trusted more to protect their state from the pandemic. In North Carolina, Gov. Roy Cooper (D) led by 58%-33%. In Pennsylvania, Gov. Tom Wolf (D) led by 58%-35%, and in Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers led by 54%-39%.” [VICE News, 4/23/20]
Up North News: Wisconsin Trusts Evers Over Trump on Coronavirus Reopening. “Nearly two-thirds of Wisconsinites said they oppose protesters who want to end restrictions that have slowed the spread of coronavirus. That same survey, done by Public Policy Polling, shows Gov. Tony Evers getting a net approval rating that is nearly 20 points higher than President Trump when it comes to handling the pandemic crisis.” [Up North News, 4/23/20]
Wisconsin Examiner: What Is The Republican Position On The Pandemic? No, Really. “Across swing states, the polling suggests that the pandemic is hurting Trump’s re-election chances. Trump trails former Vice President Joe Biden in all four states PPP polled — Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania and North Carolina. And in all of those states, voters trust their governors significantly more than Trump. “It’s no secret why voters in these states trust their governors more than President Trump to keep them safe during this crisis – his incoherent and disastrous response continues to put their health and safety at risk,” says Protect Our Care Executive Director Brad Woodhouse, whose group commissioned the polling.” [Wisconsin Examiner, 4/24/20]
Politics PA: PPP Poll: Wolf Holds Strong Approval on COVID-19, Trump Trails Biden by 7. “Another poll of battleground states shows Gov. Tom Wolf receiving high marks for his response to COVID-19 in comparison to President Donald Trump, while former Vice President Joe Biden also holds a lead in a head to head matchup over the president in the Keystone State. According to a new Public Policy Polling survey, a Democratic-affiliated polling firm that commissioned this poll with Protect Our Care, a significant majority of Pennsylvanians back Wolf’s actions in response to COVID-19, while Trump’s ratings on the issue are under water.” [Politics PA, 4/24/20]
The Dispatch: The Latest Polls Bear Bad News for Trump. “When you drill down to the states most pivotal to Trump’s re-election, the numbers don’t look better. A recent Public Policy Polling survey of voters in Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and North Carolina found that, on average, ‘the Democratic governors of those four battleground states have a net approval rating for their job on handling the coronavirus crisis that is 32 points higher than Trump’s.’” [The Dispatch, 4/24/20]