Buckeye Bellwether

July 8, 2009 by Jonathan Movroydis | Filed Under Barack Obama, Election 2012, Nixon in the News, Obama administration, Presidents, Richard Nixon 

Team Obama has sunk to a 49-44 percent approval rating in Ohio, the most pivotal swing state in the 2008 and 2004 elections:

President Barack Obama gets a lackluster 49 – 44 percent approval rating in Ohio, considered by many to be the most important swing state in a presidential election, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today. This is President Obama’s lowest approval rating in any national or statewide Quinnipiac University poll since he was inaugurated and is down from 62 – 31 percent in a May 6 survey.

By a small 48 – 46 percent margin, voters disapprove of the way Obama is handling the economy, the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University poll finds. This is down from a 57 – 36 percent approval May 6. A total of 66 percent of Ohio voters are “somewhat dissatisfied” or “very dissatisfied” with the way things are going in the state, while 33 percent are “very satisfied” or “somewhat satisfied,” numbers that haven’t changed since Obama was elected.

John F. Kennedy was the last President to win an election without taking the Buckeye State, losing it to none other than Richard Nixon in 1960.

There are numerous theories to why JFK lost Ohio to RN, but according to then Governor Mike DiSalle, it was a repudiation to the state’s high tax policies:

Governor Mike DiSalle said the day after the election, “We have to find a scapegoat and it might as well be me.” He added that he was “willing to admit” the defeat was a negative reaction to his tax program and that “getting the state back to a sound financial basis might no have been politically wise.”

Similarly, according to the Quinnipiac poll, Ohioans were willing to scapegoat former President George W. Bush until recently:

“Until now voters have given President Obama high ratings on the economy, blaming former President George W. Bush for their problems. They might be taking out their frustration on President Obama, possibly deciding that the change he promised has not come as quickly as they expected.”

President Obama has plenty of time to get in the good graces of the Buckeye state, but with an unemployment rate creeping towards 10 percent it could be an uphill battle come 2012.

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