Rendell's approval rating is dropping, poll shows

HARRISBURG (AP) -- The number of Pennsylvania voters who disapprove of Ed Rendell's performance as governor is increasing, says a poll released today.
Twenty-seven percent of the respondents in the survey by the Connecticut-based Quinnipiac University Polling Institute said they dislike the way Rendell has handled his job, compared to 19 percent in a similar poll in April.
The number of undecided voters decreased from 30 percent to 24 percent while, in both surveys, about half of the respondents said they approved of Rendell's performance.
The poll showed 50 percent of the voters support the Democratic governor's plan to increase the state income tax to offset a reduction in local property taxes and increase subsidies for public schools -- about the same as in April -- while opposition appeared to increase slightly from 38 percent to 42 percent.
In the survey, the institute interviewed 952 registered Pennsylvania voters between May 13 and Tuesday. The sampling-error margin was plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.