U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., is at the center of a few current political dramas as he balances his prospects for a presidential run in 2016 with being the leading voice in Washington on immigration reform. A poll released Wednesday by Quinnipiac University finds voters in Florida dont think much of Rubios role on immigration reform or gun control, but still give him high marks for his two and a half years in the Senate.
"As perhaps the best-known Hispanic-American in national politics, Senator Marco Rubio has a tightrope to walk between keeping the folks back home happy and serving as a high-profile symbol for the GOP nationally," said Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute.
A majority of those surveyed -- 51 percent -- approve of Rubios performance in Washington, while 35 percent disapprove of it. Republicans generally approve of Rubios job performance and Democrats disapprove of it, but independents break Rubios way -- 50 percent of them approving of the job hes done while 36 percent disapprove of it.
These new numbers are a slight improvement from a Q-poll released in March. That poll found 48 percent of voters approving of Rubios job performance and 33 percent disapproving of it.
Rubio is still seen as favorable, according to the new poll. While a third of voters surveyed -- 33 percent -- see Rubio as unfavorable, 44 percent see him as favorable. Both men and women view Rubio as favorable, as do Republicans and independents.
But the poll finds voters do not care for Rubios votes on background checks or immigration. It finds only 10 percent of those surveyed have a higher opinion of the senator for voting against expanded background checks to buy guns, while 49 percent say they think less of him. The poll finds strong support in Florida for expanded background checks, with 73 percent saying they strongly support the idea and 14 percent somewhat supporting it. Even 63 percent of voters in houses with guns say they strongly support expanded background checks.
Only 33 percent of those surveyed approve of Rubios role on immigration while 41 percent say they disapprove. The poll finds 58 percent of Florida voters believe illegal aliens should be able to stay in the nation with a path to citizenship; 24 percent believe they need to be deported. Only 12 percent think illegal aliens should stay in the nation with no path toward citizenship. A majority of those surveyed -- 59 percent -- think that children of illegal aliens should be allowed to get driver's licenses, while 32 percent oppose the idea.
Brown said the poll is a testament to Rubios political abilities.
"A mark of an able politician is one who can keep his support among the electorate even when that politician follows his own path rather than the public's preference on a high-profile issue like immigration or gun control," Brown said Wednesday.
The poll of 1,176 registered voters was taken from June 11 through June 16 and had a margin of error of +/- 2.9 percent.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or at 904-521-3722
