Gov. Bobby Jindal (R-La.) formally launched a presidential exploratory committee on Monday, the clearest indication yet that he will be announcing his candidacy for 2016.
The already-crowded GOP field and Jindal’s declining popularity rating among voters in red state Louisiana indicate the Republican governor would likely face an uphill battle for the nomination.
According to a May 2015 poll conducted by Southern Media & Opinion Research, Jindal’s job performance rating is at an all-time low.
“Another year of budget deficits and additional reductions to state services continues to take its toll on Governor Jindal’s popularity with Louisiana voters,” writes Southern Media.
“He receives a 31.8% positive job performance rating from Louisiana voters. The Southern Media & Opinion Research Survey in December 2014 had Governor Jindal with a 40.9% positive job rating. Jindal’s negative job rating was 57.6% in December 2014 and today stands at 64.7%. Governor Jindal’s excellent job performance rating fell from 10.4% last December to 4.6% in this latest survey.”
The research center attributes the latest decline primarily to the governor's weakening Republican base:
“Republican voters barely gave him a higher positive job rating [with 54.5%] than negative [44.1%],” the poll reveals.
Painting an even bleaker picture for a potential White House run, the numbers show Gov. Jindal’s popularity among Louisiana voters lower than that of the current president.
“President Barack Obama remains unpopular in Louisiana, but not as unpopular as Governor Jindal,” writes Southern Media.
“42.1% rate his job performance as positive and 57.3% negative,” the organization's findings show.
Voters who participated in the survey also ranked the president’s “excellent job performance” at 14.4-percent, 9.8 percentage points higher than the potential presidential hopeful.
(via Southern Media & Opinion Research)
In the statewide poll, Louisiana State Treasurer John Kennedy (R) outperformed both Gov. Bobby Jindal and President Obama in job performance and popularity.
H/T Gawker