Governor Chris Christie's handling of Superstorm Sandy and its aftermath is being applauded by New Jerseyans.

Governor Chris Christie
Governor's Office, Tim Larsen
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In fact, his job approval rating is soaring only a few weeks after the storm. A recent panel survey of registered voters in New Jersey from Fairleigh Dickinson University's PublicMind Poll found that before Sandy, 56 percent of respondents approved of Christie's job performance. When the same voters were recontacted after the storm, that number rose to 77 percent.

"We also asked respondents a similar question about how the Governor is doing," said Poll Director and professor of political science Krista Jenkins. "The percent of those who now say Christie is doing either an excellent or good job as governor increased from 55 percent pre-Sandy to 70 percent post-Sandy. The Governor's presence before, during and after the storm was clearly received well by Garden State voters. A situation like this gives politicians an opportunity to put partisan politics aside. Governor Christie's post-Sandy bounce suggests he was successful in capitalizing on this moment."

Christie's largest increase came from an unlikely source, Democrats. Before Sandy, one-in-four, or 26 percent of Democrats approved of the job the Governor was doing, but that number rose to two-thirds, or 67 percent in the days following the storm.

"His broad appeal is evident in how people, both Republicans and Democrats alike, responded to his leadership after the crisis," said Jenkins. "An overwhelming majority believe state government was doing a good job in responding to people after the storm. Whether the more positive outlook on things is related to the greater support for the Governor remains unclear. But, taken as a whole, these are good numbers for the governor in the days after an historic storm that wreaked tremendous destruction on the Garden State."

 

 

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