Could I get a chart or summary of approval ratings for Gary Johnson when he was governor of New Mexico (1995-2003)?
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1I don't know about approval ratings, but he was reelected with 54% of the vote. He also first won election by 10% over the incumbent.– BrythanMay 6, 2016 at 3:23
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1I have a feeling this information isn't readily available. I looked a PPP, and they don't have polling back that far. Regular polling of governors of less populous states is usually done by local universities, and many of those universities don't bother to make the data publicly available, or at least haven't so far.– The Pompitous of LoveMay 10, 2016 at 19:56
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1 Answer
As Brythan mentioned in a comment, he won the 1998 New Mexico gubernatorial election with 54.53% of the vote.
That was actually his second term, he won his first term in 1994 with 49.81% of the vote.
According to the New York Times Magazine, his approval rating took a big hit in 2000 (emphasis mine):
By acting like the uncompromising heroes in the Ayn Rand novels he admires. Last summer, a few months into his second and (constitutionally mandated) final term, Johnson told state G.O.P. leaders that he was determined to make the most of his bully pulpit while he had it. Days later, without having thought it all through (he says now), Johnson told reporters that he would support legalizing marijuana and heroin.
Ka-boom! The White House drug czar, Gen. Barry McCaffrey, flew in to condemn him. Ed Bradley came down to do a segment for ''60 Minutes.'' Johnson became the toast of the libertarian Cato Institute and Rolling Stone magazine, on his way to a starring role at the recently convened ''shadow conventions.'' Meanwhile, his chief law-enforcement official quit in protest, a local sheriff called him an ''idiot'' and his approval rating sank from 54 percent to 35 percent.
