That is North Carolina Gov. Bev Perdue’s (D) approval rating.  Yes, 25%.  Typically, one would expect someone with such low approval to have a scandal hanging around her neck, but that’s not the case here. Voters blame her for failing to take initiative while in office and not having a clear policy agenda.

This could offer Republicans an opening in North Carolina.  While Perdue has three years before her next race (if she runs), the GOP can tie her to every Democrat in the state.  This can help win the state legislature and could have an impact on Congressional races. 

Most recent polls have shown Bob McDonnell (R) with a lead in the Virginia gubernatorial race.  Last month’s Rasmussen poll had Creigh Deeds (D) ahead following his primary victory.  Rasmussen now has McDonnell up by 3 points.

A new Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of Virginia voters finds McDonnell leading Deeds 44% to 41%. Three percent (3%) prefer some other candidate, and 12% are undecided.

 

A month ago, just after Deeds beat two other gubernatorial candidates in the state Democratic Primary, he posted a six-point lead over McDonnell, 47% to 41%.

More bad news for Deeds:

McDonnell’s numbers are little changed from last month, but Deeds has suffered a 10-point drop in his favorables.

Republican Bob McDonnell announced today that he raised $1.8 million in the second quarter of 2009.  This is far less than Democrat Creigh Deeds’ $3.4 million.  Deeds’ total, however, was boosted by $500,000 contributions from the DGA and AFSCME.

Cash-on-hand gives McDonnell a superior position.  His $5 million in the bank offers a 2-to-1 advantage.

Polling shows McDonnell with a firm lead.  It will be difficult for Deeds to overcome his significant deficits.

Last week, it looked like Republican Chris Christie may have lost his post primary bounce in the polls.  This isn’t the case, according to a new poll from Quinnipiac.  Christie’s lead is growing.

Republican challenger Christopher Christie is pulling away from Democratic incumbent Gov. Jon Corzine and now holds a 53 - 41 percent lead among likely voters in the New Jersey Governor’s race, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today.

 

This compares to a 50 - 40 percent lead for the former federal prosecutor in a June 10 survey by the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University.

 

In a three-way matchup among likely voters, Christie leads Gov. Corzine 47 - 38 percent, with 8 percent for independent candidate Christopher Daggett.

Obama is coming to New Jersey to stump for Corzine, which may help his numbers.  The president remains popular in the state.

New Jersey likely voters approve 60 - 34 percent of the job President Barack Obama is doing, the first time this question has been asked of likely voters. Obama gets 90 - 7 percent approval from Democrats and 54 - 38 percent approval from independent voters, while Republicans turn thumbs down 71 - 21 percent.

Corzine may also be impacted by his possible choice of a reality TV star as a running mate.

Lastly, the RGA launched an ad today.  In only 19 seconds, they attack Corzine’s record on jobs and taxes.

Recent polling has shown a 5-8 point lead for Republican Bill McCollum in the Florida gubernatorial race.  Democrat Alex Sink, however, has the fundraising lead.  She has raised $2.3 million for her campaign account so far, and McCollum is behind with $1 million.  But Sink has been raising money much longer than McCollum.

The Tampa Tribune explains why Sink was able to raise so much more:

For McCollum, his quarterly number represents the total amount he has raised, since he was not collecting donations for re-election as attorney general prior to launching his campaign for governor on May 18. Sink, the state’s chief financial officer, had been raising cash for re-election for months when she jumped into the governor’s race on May 13. A campaign spokesman confirmed that Sink transferred the re-election money to her gubernatorial campaign fund.

McCollum has only been in the race for six weeks, so he has proven himself capable of bringing in cash quickly.  In the second quarter, Sink only raised $1.3 million.  Overall, McCollum still has an advantage in the race.

Today, Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison announced she is challenging fellow Republican Texas Gov. Rick Perry for his job.  Her campaign has been staffing up for months, so this news is hardly a surprise.  Hutchison also released her fundraising numbers.  She finished June with $6.7 million, $2.5 million ahead of Perry.  This is an impressive haul, but Perry was barred from officially raising money until the end of the legislative session in June.

Hutchison has an uphill battle.  She currently is down 12 points on Perry, according to a poll last week.  Perry polled at 38% support from Republican voters, with Hutchison at 26%.  The primary will not be until next March.

MN-Gov: Public Policy Polling shows Former Minnesota senator Norm Coleman (R) dropping in the polls after his long fought legal battle with Sen. Al Franken.  Coleman is rumored to be considering a run for governor, but he is currently trailing two of the potential Democratic candidates.

Dayton 41 - Coleman 39 - Und 20

 

Rybak 43 - Coleman 37 - Und 19

 

Kelliher 34 - Coleman 42 - Und 24

CT-Gov: From Rasmussen:

Republican challenger Chris Christie has lost his post-primary bounce but still leads incumbent Democrat Jon Corzine in the New Jersey governor’s race.

 

The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey in the state shows Christie with a seven-point lead over Corzine, 46% to 39%. A month ago, immediately following his GOP Primary victory, Christie led by 13 percentage points. The current numbers are just about identical to the pre-primary numbers from May.