A new Quinnipiac poll gauges where Virginia voters stand on Governor Bob McDonnell in light of the relationship between McDonnell and Star Scientific CEO Jonnie Williams, who paid for wedding catering for the Governor’s daughter.
Quinnipiac's Peter Brown says McDonnell's job approval ratings dropped from 53% in March to its current 49%.
"But it is down and it is the first time the governor's job approval has been below 50%. Now, that's the case because he's been an extraordinarily popular governor. Most of his fellow governors around the country would kill for his job approval rating."
About whether or not McDonnell violated ethics laws when his daughter's catering bill was paid for by Williams—most of those polled don't seem to care:
"12%think that McDonnell engaged in serious wrongdoing, 6% think he engaged in not serious wrongdoing, and 16% say he didn't do anything wrong. The vast majority don't have an opinion on that question."
Brown adds that when asked if this controversy was a "major issue" or “just politics,” voters by a three-to-one ratio believe it's just politics. Brown says it's still too early to say whether McDonnell's approval rating will keep dropping the longer this plays out. The poll also reported that 62% of Virginia voters are somewhat or very satisfied with the way things are going in the Commonwealth today.
