Bombshell Poll Finds Patrick = Toast

Just how badly has Governor Deval Patrick’s public standing deteriorated? He’s now running five points behind a guy who’s facing a state ethics inquiry for allegedly rewarding his buddies with lucrative “consulting” payouts.

Deval’s bad news was delivered via a bombshell poll courtesy of WHDH-7 and Suffolk University and reported in today’s Boston Herald. It has Patrick securing only 30% of the vote, compared to 35% for newly-embattled state treasurer Tim Cahill:

Only 34 percent of those surveyed in the poll conducted for 7News by Suffolk University say the governor deserves re-election, while a stunning 47 percent say it is “time to elect someone else.”

Voters gave Patrick a 43 percent unfavorable rating and a 44 percent favorable rating. The rest are undecided.

Cahill, meanwhile, had only an 8 percent unfavorable rating and 40 percent favorable. One caveat: The poll was conducted before headlines this week that the treasurer faces an ethics probe over a Lottery contract.

Asked about Patrick’s job performance, 49 percent disapproved, 40 percent approved and 11 percent were undecided.

Cahill outpolled fellow Democrat Patrick in a general election match among Republicans and independents and among voters in all age groups except 18-35, and easily defeated him among male voters – yet 23 percent of voters surveyed said they have never heard of the treasurer.

“The wiseguys always say you can’t beat somebody with nobody,” said Andy Hiller, chief political reporter for 7News. “Now nobody has a name . . . and it’s Tim Cahill.”

Patrick’s dismal poll numbers come after battering in the press over his naming of a senator pal to a costly plum post, raises for sheriffs, addition of two pricey staffers to the Pike payroll, embarrassing comments by his transportation secretary and his own dismissal of the controversies as “trivial.”

Voters, the 7News poll shows, appear to have had it with Beacon Hill politics, with a whopping 72 percent calling for the state to add a recall vote for “underperforming” pols.

The chance to recall elected officials, common in other parts of the country, would do Massachusetts a world of good. But there’s another, even more potentially devastating approach voters could take if given the opportunity: the addition of “none of the above” to the ballot.

This has been in place in Nevada for over 30 years, with this option sometimes generating thousands of votes. Just two years ago, there was an attempt here in Massachusetts to provide the same option. Imagine having the ability to truly vote against unopposed candidates in our one-party state.

As for Patrick’s declining popularity, I believe Barack Obama is to blame: until the Dear Leader assumed power, Deval was wisely keeping a low profile and seeming to recover from his early missteps. Since January, however, the governor has seemed to adopt Obama’s arrogant “I won” attitude, greatly affecting his standing.

It’s more than the crazy tax-and-spend schemes, Deval’s approach and delivery is clearly a factor. His best re-election hope is now built around a competitive three-way race where the unenrolled candidate steals votes away from the Republican. First, he’ll have to secure the Democratic nomination, which now appears anything but assured.

2007 Patrick – Cadillac image: Mark Garfinkel