Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., is currently ahead of his Republican challenger, former pharmaceutical executive Bob Hugin, despite his ethics scandal, according to the Quinnipiac University Poll.
Menendez, who was formally admonished by the Senate Ethics Committee after his trial on federal bribery and corruption charges ended in a mistrial, currently leads his GOP challenger in the upcoming midterm elections by a slim 6-point lead:
- Menendez: 43 percent.
- Hugin: 37 percent.
- Don’t know or other: 20 percent.
The senator has yet to win back New Jersey voters or even his own party, as a majority of Democrats either rate him unfavorably, or don’t know enough about him to be sure:
- 29 percent of voters favor Menendez.
- 47 percent of voters are unfavorable.
- 20 percent of voters don’t know enough.
- 49 percent of Democrats favor Menendez.
- 32 percent of Democrats are unfavorable.
- 16 percent of Democrats haven’t heard enough.
“As Sen. Robert Menendez sees his once dominant lead whittled down to single digits, New Jersey voters are sending a clear message. They are troubled by the ethics cloud hanging over him,” said Quinnipiac polling analyst Mary Snow.
“While voters prefer Sen. Menendez over Republican Bob Hugin in deep blue New Jersey, they give the incumbent negative approval and favorability ratings.”
Fellow New Jersey Democrats Sen. Cory Booker and Gov. Phil Murphy have larger support from the voters:
- Murphy: 54 percent approve; 32 percent disapprove.
- Booker: 56 percent approve; 31 percent disapprove.
They also have much better support from members of their own party:
- Murphy: 82 percent of Democrats approve; 7 percent disapprove.
- Booker: 84 percent of Democrats approve; 5 percent disapprove.
President Donald Trump’s own approval ratings in the state rank well below his national average:
- Trump: 33 percent approve; 63 percent disapprove.
Quinnipiac surveyed 908 voters in New Jersey by phone from August 15-20, with a margin of error of +/- 4.6 percentage points.
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