Public Policy Polling samples voter sentiment in four states where Republican senators face re-election contests and find that voters are angry over Republicans’ vow not to consider a U.S. Supreme Court nomination by President Obama no matter who it is.
Strong majorities favored consideration of an Obama nominee in Arizona, Iowa, North Carolina and Missouri.
Key findings from the surveys include:
-All these Senators start out with pretty mediocre approval ratings. John McCain’s approval is a 26/63 spread, Roy Blunt’s is 25/48, and Richard Burr’s is 28/44. Only Chuck Grassley within this group is on positive ground and his 47/44 spread is down considerably from what we usually find for him as he loses crossover support from Democrats because of his intransigence on the Supreme Court issue. Further making life difficult for this quartet is the incredibly damaged brand of Senate Republicans. Mitch McConnell is vastly unpopular in these four states, coming in at 11/63 in Iowa, 16/68 in Arizona, 16/69 in Missouri, and 19/65 in North Carolina. McConnell will be an albatross for all Senate Republicans seeking reelection this fall.
I’d be interested in Arkansas numbers on similar questions. Democrat Conner Eldridge has called for filling the vacancy. He’s challenging Republican Sen. John Boozman, who — along with Sen. Tom Cotton — have vowed to block an Obama nomination no matter what. To date, being against Obama all the time has been electoral gold in Arkansas. But it’s evident that voters in other states, even many favorable generally to Republicans, believe in the orderly functioning of government, not strict partisan obstructionism.