A Washington Post-Ipsos poll finds that 72 percent of Michigan residents overall approve of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's handling of the coronavirus outbreak.
The sample for Whitmer wasn't large enough to estimate results by party. But the paper notes that a stand-alone Fox News poll in April found 64 percent of registered voters approved of Whitmer’s handling of the situation, including 90 percent of Democrats compared with 35 percent of Republicans.
The Post's national poll, which surveyed more than 8,000 people, showed that Republican Gov. Mike DeWine had the highest approval rating (86%) of any governor, with a high level of bipartisan support. Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo came in second (81%), followed by Demoratic Gov. Gavin Newsom of California (79%). In contrast, Republican Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, who has opened up businesses early, has 39% approval.
The disparities appear to be linked not solely to partisanship, but also to the differing paths the governors have adopted as they seek to balance efforts to contain the spread of the virus while trying to limit the damage to their economies, the Post writes.
Only 43 percent approved of Trump’s efforts, with more than 8 in 10 Republicans and Republican-leaning independents approving of his handling of the crisis and almost 9 in 10 Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents disapproving.
Whitmer has pushed back against pressure from protesters and Republicans to ease restrictions on reopening the economy. A four-hour protest rally is scheduled Thursday at the Capitol -- the third in four weeks.
The previous two on April 15 and 30 have drawn wide. President Trump voiced support for Michigan protesters, saying Whitmer should loosen restrictions.
