According to new polling released Monday morning, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox is the nation's 27th most popular governor. Utah Senators Mitt Romney and Mike Lee are in the bottom half among their Senate colleagues.
In the latest Morning Consult tracking poll of all 50 governors, 53% of Utahns view Cox favorably, and 36% disagree. 11% said they had no opinion.
Cox's favorable rating in the Morning Consult poll aligns with a poll released last week showing him with a large lead over Democrat Brian King in the gubernatorial election. That survey showed Cox with 49% support.
When he first took office in 2021, Cox was one of the top 10 "most popular" governors in the nation, with an approval rating of 62%. His approval rating has dropped since.
Last spring, the Morning Consult survey showed 61% of Utahns approved of Cox's job performance. That approval has steadily declined since, dropping to the current 53%.
At the same time, his disapproval rating jumped significantly in the last three months, from 31% to 36%. That increase in disapproval coincides with Cox's closer-than-expected primary victory over Phil Lyman after losing the delegate vote to Lyman at April's Utah GOP convention.
Cox 's approval rating is higher than several other Republican governors, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem.
Cox trails Democratic Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, who took over as chairman of the National Governors Association when Cox's term finished earlier this year.
Vermont Republican Gov. Phil Scott was the highest-rated governor in the poll for the ninth straight quarter, with 73% approval.
Romney and Lee
According to the survey, Sens. Romney and Lee have the 60th and 64th highest approval ratings.
Romney, who is leaving the Senate in January, has a +4 net approval rating, with 47% of Utahns viewing him favorably and 43% unfavorably. 10% had no opinion.
Rep. John Curtis is the frontrunner to replace Romney in the Senate next year.
Romney's disapproval rating is among the highest in the Senate. Only Sens. Lindsey Graham, Ted Cruz, Lisa Murkowski, Ron Johnson, and Mitch McConnell have higher disapproval than Romney.
Lee's net approval rating is +10, higher than Romney's, despite his overall approval (46%) being one point lower. However, 36% of Utahns hold an unfavorable opinion of Lee. 18% said they had no opinion.
According to the Survey, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders has the highest approval rating at 70%.
The Morning Consult poll was conducted between July and September 2024.
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