Each new poll about the political fortunes of New York Gov. David Paterson and the headline on the latest Marist Poll is no exception: "Paterson's Approval Rating Still in the Tank."

Only 21 percent of voters believe he is doing an excellent or good job (the "excellents" number 3 percent) while 39 percent rate his performance as fair and 37 percent as poor. Fellow Democrats don't give him a rousing endorsement either, with 28 percent regarding his performance as excellent or good (only 4 percent say excellent).

Mark Sanford after meeting with his Cabinet last Friday. (Getty)

"There is virtually no difference between Republicans and Democrats on this matter," says CNN Polling Director Keating Holland. "Fifty-one percent of Democrats and 54 percent of Republicans want Sanford to step down."

Since the initial revelation, Sanford has said that he "crossed lines" with a handful of women other than his Argentinean mistress but didn't have sex with them.

Americans oppose the climate change bill that just passed the House - or, at least what they know of it - by 41 percent to 37 percent with 22 percent not sure, and a plurality believe it will hurt the economy, according to a Rasmussen Reports poll conducted June 28-29.

That concern about the economic impact is clearly something the Republicans are already zeroing in on as an issue they believe will work for them. The National Republican Congressional Committee sent out a fundraising pitch today pointing to a study by the conservative Heritage Foundation saying the legislation would cost the average family nearly $3,000 per household per year.

Deval Patrick (Getty)

Christy Mihos who ran against Patrick as an independent in 2006 and garnered only 7 percent of the vote, polls 41 percent to Patrick's 40 percent with 10 percent preferring some other candidate and 9 percent undecided. Mihos has hired veteran political consultant Dick Morris for his campaign, this time as a Republican.

Both enjoy strong support from their respective parties, but they pretty much split unaffiliated voters with Hodes getting 33 percent, Sunun 30 percent and 37 percent undecided. Hodes has an 11 point lead among women, while men are evenly divided.

To see how the 2010 Senate races are shaping up, check out the CQ Politics' election map.

Republican gubernatorial candidate Chris Christie remains unfamiliar to some voters in New Jersey, but they still prefer Christie over Democratic Gov. Jon Corzine in this year's race, according to a new survey from Public Policy Polling,.

Republican Gov. Charlie Crist's high statewide name recognition is paying off, with Crist holding strong leads in both the primary and general elections at this early stage in the race, according to a Mason-Dixon Polling & Research survey conducted June 24-26.

It's not surprising that Democrats and Republicans differ sharply on what they consider to be the top economic concerns, but now Gallup, in a poll conducted June 23-24, has put some numbers to those issues that define where the divide is.

If Democrats can recruit their top potential challengers for Oregon's 2010 open seat governor's race, the party begins the race at an advantage, according to results from a new poll.

Despite revelations Wednesday about South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford's infidelity and use of a taxpayer-funded trip to visit his mistress in Argentina, a majority of the state's voters think Sanford is "about as ethical" as most politicians.

Just 18 percent said Sanford was less ethical, according to a poll conducted June 25 by Rasmussen Reports. South Carolina voters apparently do not have high expectations for their elected officials: a third agreed that most members of Congress and governors have extramarital affairs, 42 percent were unsure and just a quarter disagreed.

Rasmussen found a lower number of voters - 46 percent -- saying Sanford should resign than other recent polls. Sixty percent of respondents to a Survey USA poll conducted June 24 believed the governor should step down. In the Rasmussen poll, 39 percent opposed Sanford's resignation and 16 percent were unsure.

We take a bow, as always, to Nate Silver's analysis of polls on his FiveThiryEight.Com site where, digesting two polls about South Carolinians who wanted Gov. Mark Sanford to resign after his admission of an extramarital affair, contrasted them to polls on other "pantsless pols" who had admitted similar indiscretions.

His conclusion: Sanford faces more pressure to resign than many of the others, except for former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer. But those who want Sanford to step down outnumbered those who wanted to wave good-bye to former Idaho Sen. Larry Craig, former New Jersey Gov. James McGreevey, former President Bill Clinton, Nevada Sen. John Ensign and Louisiana Sen. David Vitter.

Here's the nifty chart that Nate constructed based on polling of other prominent politicians who have strayed from the path:

North Carolina Sen. Richard Burr remains an unknown quantity to a large chunk of state voters, despite five years in office, according to an Insider Advantage/Majority Opinion Research poll conducted June 22.

Public Policy Polling also has found Burr with low popularity ratings in North Carolina and a similar percent of voters with no opinion of Burr - it's latest poll registered the Republican's approval rating at 35 percent with 31 percent undecided.

A CNN/Essence Magazine, Opinion Research poll conducted last month found significant differences in the way blacks and whites view issues such as racial discrimination and the presidency of Barack Obama.

Fifty-five percent of black Americans say racial discrimination remains a serious problem, about the same level as it was in 2000. Another 28 percent of blacks see racial discrimination as "somewhat serious." Whites have a significantly different perspective with 17 percent believing discrimination continued to be a very serious problem and 39 percent saying it was somewhat serious.

Mark Sanford at yesterday's press conference. (Getty)

Sixty percent of South Carolina respondents to a Survey USA poll conducted Wednesday said Sanford should resign his office in the wake of his disclosure of his relationship with a woman in Argentina. Just more than a third -- 34 percent -- said he shouldn't resign.

The poll was conducted in conjunction with television station WCSC in Charleston.

Most of the respondents also expressed anger over the two-term Republican governor's week-long disappearance that preceded his confessional news conference. Sanford did not notify the public of his absence or his staff of his whereabouts. This prompted his staff to tell reporters he was hiking the Appalachian Trail, when he was, in fact, in Argentina.

It remains to be seen how South Carolinians judge Gov. Mark Sanford after his admission, but Gallup's last Values and Beliefs update, conducted last month put affairs between married men and woman at the top of the "morally wrong" list.

Ninety-two percent of those surveyed condemned such affairs as morally wrong, a number that has been pretty consistent since 2001. That topped polygamy (91 percent), cloning humans (88 percent), and suicide (80 percent).

Just three in 10 Pennsylvanians think that Democratic Sen. Arlen Specter has done a good enough job to deserve re-election, according to a a Franklin and Marshall College Poll conducted June 16-21.

The poll suggested that a likely 2010 primary between Specter and Rep. Joe Sestak will be highly competitive. Specter leads Sestak by 33 percent to 13 percent, though a large plurality of respondents (48 percent) are undecided.

In a poll of the governor's race, Republican state Attorney General Bill McCollum leads Democrat state Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink 42 percent to 34 percent among 500 likely voters surveyed June 22. An additional 18 percent of voters were undecided and 7 percent indicated a preference for "some other candidate." The margin of error was 4.5 points.

Voters disapprove of Corzine's job performance by a 54 percent to 34 percent margin with 12 percent undecided and say the state is heading in the wrong direction by 59 percent to 28 percent.

To follow the 2009 and 2010 governors' races, check out CQ Politics' election map.

The number of Americans who cite economic problems as the most important challenges facing the country has dropped by 21 points since February but still remains at the top of the list, according to a Gallup poll conducted June 14-17.

Responding to an open-ended question, 65 percent said the economy was the top problem compared to 86 percent in February. The economy in general was the top concern for 41 percent while 14 percent said it was unemployment and jobs. All other items were in single digits.

Other issues mentioned by respondents didn't show much change. Fourteen percent cited poor health care, hospitals and the high cost of health care, which was an increase of April and May, but only slightly higher than the 12 percent recorded in March. Seven percent pointed to the situation with Iraq and 6 percent expressed dissatisfaction with government and politicians.

Of the registered Democrats who responded to the poll, 44 percent called themselves undecided.

Labor activist Jonathan Tasini was barely on the boards, as the favorite of 4 percent of respondants.

Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney tops Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and Republican party chairman Michael Steele when it comes to favorability ratings with the overall public, but among Republicans Palin far outpaces the pack, according to a Pew Research Center poll conducted June 10-14.

Romney's favorable-to-unfavorable ratio among the general public is 40 percent to 28 percent with 12 percent undecided with 32 percent undecided. Palin's is 45 percent to 42 percent with 12 percent undecided. Gingrich is in negative territory with 38 percent unfavorable to 35 percent favorable and 26 percent undecided, and Steele's numbers don't count for much since 63 percent have no opinion of him.

At the same time, a clear majority - 58 percent to 39 percent - say action by government is necessary to control costs and extend coverage. Americans are dissatisfied with the overall health system by 57 percent to 43 percent. President Obama's proposal to create a public plan to compete with private insurers is supported by 62 percent to 33 percent, although 41 percent would want that plan to be run by an independent organization compared to 21 percent who favor it being a government agency.

This is a picture that Norman Rockwell could have painted: an America with high confidence in the American military, in the police, in the church, in the presidency, and in small business.

In a new Gallup poll, the military drew an 82 percent confidence rating, similar to previous spikes in public approval during the 1991 Gulf War and the early stages of the war in Iraq. Confidence in small business ranked high with 67 percent of the people polled, followed by the police at 59 percent and organized religion at 52 percent. The presidency, which was at a low ebb of approval at the end of the Bush administration, evoked confidence among 51 percent of the people responding to the poll.

"Public confidence in the presidency has risen by 25 points over the past year, exceeding the 11-point increase in confidence in the military," Gallup said in explaining its findings. "The percentage of Americans saying they have a great deal or quite a lot of confidence in the presidency has in fact doubled since June 2008, from 26 percent to 51 percent."

Brunner, the Secretary of State, leads Portman 40 percent to 32 percent with 29 percent undecided, and Fisher, the lieutenant governor, leads 41 percent to 32 percent with 27 percent undecided. Portman was a six-term congressman who left the House to take posts in the Bush administration.

President Obama enjoys a job approval rating of 65 percent, slightly lower than in the three previous months, but his approval levels when it comes to his handling of specific issues - while nearly all positive - are lower than his personal marks, according to a Washington Post/ABC News poll conducted June 18-21. These findings generally track with several major polls released last week.

Obama's approval falls below 50 percent on the issue of the federal deficit, and 87 percent say they are concerned about its size. Fifty-six percent of those described themselves as very concerned. And his margin over congressional Republicans in terms of whom the public trusts more on the economy, while still large, fell 13 points since April.

That however, was about the only glimmer of hope in the poll. Just 15 of voters said they would elect Paterson in 2010, while 70 percent said they would prefer someone else, nearly identical to the response in May. Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, meanwhile, won a hypothetical primary match-up against Paterson 69 percent to 16 percent, an even larger spread than in May. Cuomo also hit his highest favorability rating ever recorded by Siena, at 71 percent. Forty-six percent of respondents said they would prefer to see Cuomo run for governor, versus 35 percent who said he should run for re-election as Attorney General.

-Emily Cadei

To follow the 2009 and 2010 governors' races, check out CQ Politics' election map.

Roy Barnes

Barnes polls 48 percent among Democrats with all others tested in the survey in single digits. of the rest, the highest scorer is Attorney General Thurbert Davis with 8 percent. Barnes is seen favorably by 54 percent compared to 12 percent who seem him favorably, and 25 percent who are undecided. Davis' favorable-to-unfavorable ration is 45 percent to 17 percent with 38 percent not sure. Over half of voters don't know enough about the other candidates tested to have an opinion.

The strongest opposition - 60 percent to 36 percent - comes from those with a high school education or less. College graduates favor the legislation by 56 percent to 43 percent.

Republicans oppose the move by 62 percent to 37 percent and independents by 51 percent to 46 percent, while Democrats favor it 54 percent to 45 percent.

Only 17 percent of those surveyed would support a smoking ban.

Ted Strickland

Strickland's favorable-to-unfavorable ratio is only 43 percent to 42 percent with 15 percent undecided. Kasich's is 31 percent to 30 percent, but in his case, 39 percent are undecided which is not surprising, since despite his nine terms, he left the House after 2000.

John Ensign (Getty)

A month ago, 18 percent viewed him unfavorably, a number that now stands at 37 percent. But nearly half of those polled said their view of Ensign was unchanged by the news.

Americans favor by 72 percent to 20 percent the idea of a government-administered health insurance plan that would compete with private plans and, by 57 percent to 37 percent, they say they would be willing to pay higher taxes so that everyone could have coverage, according to a New York Times/CBS News pol conducted June 12-16.

Sixty-five percent say providing for the uninsured is a more serious problem right now compared to 26 percent who say that keeping costs down is the priority. Sixty-four percent say the federal government should guarantee health care for all compared to 30 percent whose say it is not the government's responsibility.

Well, it's clearly "job approval" week, and now Gallup has weighed in with its measure of how the public thinks Barack Obama is doing. His report card mark: 58 percent approve of his performance, down from 63 percent in the last poll. Thirty-three percent disapprove (his disapproval high was 34 percent). The poll was conducted June 16-18.

Obama's approval rating since January has averaged 63 percent thought it dipped to 59 percent on four occasions. The fall-off in the latest poll's score was driven mostly by a drop in approval among independents (from 60 percent down to 53 percent) and Republicans (from 25 percent to 21 percent).

Neil Abercrombie (Getty)

A DailyKos/Research 2000 poll conducted June 15 to June 17 showed Abercrombie leading Honolulu mayor Mufi Hannemann in a Democratic primary match up of likely voters 42 to 22 percent, but 36 percent of voters were undecided. The poll's margin of error is 4 percentage points.

Current Republican Gov. Linda Lingle, a moderate who defied the state's Democratic trend by winning her first election in 2002 and re-election in 2006, will be term-limited in 2010.

Americans are growing more optimistic that the economy will improve in the next year, as will their own personal financial situations, but for the moment, they still are cutting back on living costs, according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted June 10-14.

Forty-eight percent believe the economy will be better a year from now, up from 40 percent in February. Similarly, while 52 percent rate the economy as poor, that's down from 68 percent in March. Those making less than $30,000 a year are less optimistic about the future, with 42 percent expecting better times. A little more than half of those earning above that come down on the things-will-be-better in 12 months side.

A Daily Kos/Research 2000 poll, taken June 15-17 of 600 likely voters, gives McDonnell 45 percent and Deeds 44 percent, with 11 percent undecided on a choice.

The survey revealed a distinct age gap. Deeds performs best among young voters, beating McDonnell by 16 percentage points among voters under 30. But McDonnell has a 21-point lead among voters over 60.

President Obama still enjoys a 61 percent job approval rating and 65 percent are optimistic about his economic policies, according to a Pew Research Center poll conducted June 10-14. But his approval rating when it comes specifically to his performance on top issues has fallen, a finding in line with two other major polls released yesterday.

The public approves of Obama's performance on the economy by 52 percent to 40 percent, down from 60 percent to 33 percent in April. It approves of his handling ofd foreign policy by 57 percent to 31 percent, compared to 61 percent to 22 percent in April. On dealing with financial institutions, his approval ratio is 50 percent to 40 percent while his approach to the problems of U.S. automakers gets a bare 47 percent to 44 percent approval mark, which is within the poll's 3 point margin of error.

The survey of 374 likely Democratic voters, had Specter with 51 percent of the primary vote and Sestak with 32 percent.

Specter has good approval ratings among voters in his adopted party. Seventy-two percent of respondents said they had a "very favorable" or "somewhat favorable" impression of Specter, compared to 26 percent who said they had "somewhat unfavorable" or "very unfavorable" feelings.

The rubber is meeting the road in the presidency of Barack Obama. While his job approval ratings remain high, Americans are focusing in on his policies and a substantial number are concerned with the way his recovery and other major proposals are expanding the deficit, according to a New York Times/CBS News poll conducted June 12-16.

The poll found that support for his proposals on a range of issues - health care, rescuing the auto industry and closing Guantánamo - fall short of his general job approval ratings.

President Obama is starting to move out of his "charismatic and charming leader" phase with the public to judgments on how he is handling challenges facing the country, with concerns growing about the budget deficit and the extent of government intervention into the economy, according to a Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll conducted June 12-15.

Fifty-eight percent of those polled said Obama and Congress should focus on keeping the deficit down even if it slows economic recovery. Sixty-nine percent said they had concerns about federal intervention in the economy whether it was taking an ownership stake in General Motors, limiting executive compensation or getting more involved in health care. Thirty percent did not share that level of concern. Today, the Obama administration took that a step further with its proposal for broader regulation of the financial system.

The improvement in the stock market may have lifted some peoples' spirits, but only 15 percent of the public considers the economy in good shape while 84 percent describe it as in bad shape, according to a New York Times/CBS News poll conducted June 12-16.

However, 27 percent say the economy is getting better, up 7 points since early January before President Obama took office, and the number of those saying the economy was deteriorating has dropped in that time from 54 percent to 25 percent.

Bring up the rear are Democratic leaders in Congress (42 percent), health insurance companies (35 percent), and Republican leaders in Congress (34 percent).

Doctors get big majorities across party lines. When it comes to Obama, he ranks first among Democrats at 85 percent, fourth among independents at 53 percent, and second-to-last among Republican leaders at 28 percent, (their lowest mark goes to their Democratic colleagues on the Hill).

Richard Burr(Getty)

Republicans say Burr should get another term by a tepid 49 percent to 26 percent with 26 percent undecided. Independents say he should not by 52 percent to 34 percent while Democrats, unsurprisingly, want to see him gone by 66 percent to 11 percent.

Voters are split on whether they approve of his performance - 35 percent disapprove, 34 percent approve - with 31 percent undecided. And when asked if they would support Burr against an unnamed Democrat, 41 percent chose the Democrat to 38 percent for Burr and 21 percent undecided. The margin of error is 3.5 percent.

Russ Feingold (Getty)

The third-term Democrat is particularly popular with members of his own party - who give him an 80 percent approval rating -- but he also has strong support from independents, 50 percent of whom approved of his job performance compared to 37 percent who disapproved.

Conservatives (59 percent of the sample) favor Tiahrt by 10 points and moderates (35 percent of the sample) prefer Moran by 15 points.

About two-thirds of voters believe that President Obama has not been tough enough with the two nations - North Korea and Iran - that have raised serious concerns about their nuclear ambitions, and those numbers include a majority of Democrats, according to a Fox News/Opinion Dynamics poll conducted June 9-10.

Sixty-nine percent say Obama has not been tough enough on North Korea, including 65 percent of Democrats, and 66 percent say he has not been tough enough on Iran, including 57 percent of Democrats.

James Doyle

If he wins reelection, Doyle would be the first Democrat in Wisconsin history to serve three terms as governor.

That echoes a recent Daily Kos/Research 2000 poll that also recorded Doyle's favorability rating at an all-time low.

Americans are split at 41 percent each over the idea of creating a government-run insurance plan to compete with private health insurance companies as President Obama has proposed, according to a Rasmussen Reports poll released today.

Obama says that such a proposal would reduce costs but Americans disagree by 40 percent to 32 percent. Sixty-three percent predicted a government-run health insurance company would lose money and only 20 percent believe that's not likely. Americans believe by 49 percent to 34 percent that private insurers will provide better service and more choices than the government.

When it comes to party identification, Democrats have been making all the gains recently. But when it comes to ideology, 40 percent of Americans described themselves as conservative, 35 percent as moderate and 21 percent as liberal, according to a Gallup analysis of its 2009 polling.

The percentage of conservatives has increased by 2 points since last year, while moderates have decreased by two points and liberals fell by 1 point.

How would you describe your political views - [very conservative, conservative, (or) moderate liberal, (or) very liberal?

By party, 73 percent of Republicans call themselves conservatives, 24 percent say they are moderates and 3 percent liberals. Among Democrats, 40 percent say they are moderates, 38 percent are liberals and 22 percent are conservative. Forty-five percent of independents class themselves as moderate, 34 percent are conservative and 20 percent liberal. Those figures are without "leaners."

As appointed Sen. Roland W. Burris decides whether to ask voters to let him keep his job, a majority of his constituents say they'd just as soon see him go home for good.

Only 6 percent of those surveyed by Rasmussen Reports said they were definitely ready to vote for the Democrat who replaced President Barack Obama in the Senate. Another 61 percent told Rasmussen's researchers they'd made up their minds in the other direction and definitely would vote against Burris if given the chance.

A month earlier, Rasmussen asked the same question and found that 54 percent were ready to vote against Burris.

Republicans say they would not confirm her by a 55 percent to 19 percent margin, while Democrats back the choice 69 percent to 12 percent and independents by 46 percent to 33 percent.

Tommy Thompson (Getty)

Thompson outperforms fellow Republicans Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker, who has already declared his candidacy, and former U.S. Rep. Mark Neumann, who is expected to join the race. But at this early stage, that is largely due simply to name recognition - less than half of respondents had formed an opinion of Walker, while just over a third had no opinion of Neumann.

Americans think the country is heading on the right track by 52 percent to 42 percent margin with 6 percent undecided, according to an Ipsos/McClatchy poll conducted June 4-8. That's a hair less than a month ago, but an improvement compared to two months ago when the result when 48 percent said "wrong track" and 45 percent said "right track."

Obama's approval rating was 64 percent to 32 percent with 3 percent having "mixed feelings." That broke down to 40 percent strongly approving of his job performance, 14 percent "somewhat" approving and 10 percent leaning towards approval. That result, too, was similar to a month ago.

The reverse was too for Congress where the disapproval ratio was 52 percent to 39 percent with 7 percent having mixed feelings. Ten percent strongly approved of the job Congress was doing and 25 strongly disapproved.

(Getty)

A Gallup poll conducted June 9-10 found 55 percent of Americans opposed to the move while 41 percent approved. The net disapproval was 16 to 19 points in every region except the Midwest, the home of the domestic industry, where the margin of those against to those who supported it was 50 percent to 46 percent.

Hannah Montana ... running a poor fourth (Getty)

President Obama trumps the Pope and Tiger Woods when it comes to who voters would rather meet and have their picture taken with, and Hannah Montana runs a distant fourth, according to a Fox News/Opinion Dynamics poll conducted June 9-10. (Question 54 in the poll).

Obama managed to eke out a 2-to-1 victory over the closest contenders among three other choices provided by Fox, with 42 percent wanting to pose with him, compared to 22 percent who picked Woods, 21 percent who preferred the Pontiff and only 5 percent who felt drawn to Montana.

There was a sharp partisan divide on this question. Republicans favored Woods by 34 percent although the Pope was a close second at 31 percent, so His Holiness managed at least a statistical tie for second among this group since the margin of error was 3 points. Obama got 16 percent and Montana again brought up the rear at 7 percent. Independents chose Obama over Woods by 38 percent to 28 percent, with the Pope at 18 percent and Montana at 4 percent. Sixty-eight percent of Democrats picked Obama as a photo-mate, with the Pope at 16 percent and Montana and Woods in single digits.

There's something to read into that, but we don't know quite what.

One more Fox you-need-to-know result: Although President Obama says he has quit smoking cigarettes, 37 percent of voters believe he is still sneaking in some smokes while 30 percent believe he has completely quit. (Thirty-three percent wouldn't hazard a guess).

A Rasmussen Reports poll taken Wednesday had Deeds at 47 percent and McDonnell, a former state Attorney General, at 41 percent. The survey was conducted as Deeds, a state senator, was basking in the media spotlight after easily defeating primary foes Terry McAuliffe, a former Democratic National Committee chairman, and former state Rep. Brian Moran.

This year's race for governor is a rematch of candidates, though for a different office: McDonnell defeated Deeds by a very narrow margin in the 2005 race for state Attorney General. In the immediate aftermath of Tuesday's primary, Deeds was rated higher in the Rasmussen poll, but just slightly.

Overall, 34 percent of Americans have a favorable view of the GOP compared to 59 percent who do not. In 2003, the reverse was true with 56 percent having a favorable view and 33 percent a negative one. Democrats are viewed favorably by 53 percent to 41 percent with the closest they came to slipping into negative territory being 2005.

Bradley Byrne

In addition, 30 percent of independents (21 percent of the sample) are undecided in each of the match-ups.

Bradley Byrne, a former state senator and college chancellor, leads two of the Democrats in the poll: Rep. Artur Davis by 39 percent to 35 percent with 26 percent undecided, and Agriculture Commissioner Ron Sparks by 41 percent to 27 percent with 33 percent undecided.

Sixty-two percent of voters support President Obama's push for a major overhaul of the health care system with 38 percent of those in the category of "strongly supporting" such action, according to a Diageo/Hotline poll conducted June 4-7.

The most solid backing for action comes from Democrats who want big changes in health care by 87 percent to 7 percent followed by independents who favor it 64 percent to 28 percent. Republicans oppose it 52 percent to 35 percent.

A Quinnipiac University poll of likely voters conducted June 3-8, following the state's June 2 primary, found Corzine trailing Christie 40 to 50 percent among likely voters. Quinnipiac notes that this is their first survey of likely voters, a more select sample than registered voters.

Corzine's job approval rating in the current survey was 36 percent and his disapproval rating was 56 percent.

While there is a clear frontrunner on the Republican side, Democrats have a weaker bench at this stage in the race and, unlike a poll yesterday which indicated that Republicans could lose the governor's chair that Crist is vacating, the GOP seems to have the upper hand on the Senate contest as of now.

Crist, who announced last month his decision to vie for the open U.S. Senate seat instead of a second term as governor, led Rubio 54 to 23 percent among registered Republicans. An additional 21 percent of Republicans expressed no preference.

David Paterson (Getty)

Seventy-one percent said someone else besides Paterson should be elected to a full-term in 2010.

He scores 27 percent or lower when respondents were asked if he cares about the needs of people like themselves, his ability to deal with a serious crisis, his ability to bring jobs to New York, his capacity for working with lawmakers to balance the budget, or whether he could reduce property taxes.

Rush Limbaugh (Getty)

In fact, all the people named have numbers so low that USA Today/Gallup sees it as hard evidence of the Republicans' leadership vacuum. Gingrich and Limbaugh are each picked by 10 percent by Republicans or Republican leaners, followed by former Vice President Dick Cheney at 9 percent, and last year's GOP presidential nominee John McCain at 6 percent. Another former GOP presidential hopeful, Mitt Romney, who seems to be positioning himself for another try, drew 2 percent.

Among all adults, Limbaugh scores 13 percent, Cheney 10 percent and McCain and Gingrich 6 percent each.

Centrism and the increasing number of independent voters are emerging as hallmarks of the Obama era although the "growing political middle" is "steadfastly mixed" in its beliefs, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of its polling data it has been collecting since 1987. It includes surveys this year between March 31 - April 6 and April 14-21.

Pew says the proportion of independents among the electorate is now at its highest level in 70 years. In the last five months, the percentage of independents has risen from 30 percent to 39 percent, while Democrats have slipped from 39 percent to 33 percent and Republicans from 26 percent to 22 percent.

Some independents are more conservative on several key issues because they are defectors from the Republicans. Thirty-three percent describe themselves as conservative, up from 28 percent in 2007.

Alex Sink

A Quinnipiac University poll of Florida voters conducted June 2-7 found that Democrat Alex Sink, the state Chief Financial Officer, holds a narrow 38 percent to 34 percent lead over her major competitor in the governor's race: Republican state Attorney General Bill McCollum. The poll's margin of error is 2.8 percentage points.

Two new polls are out today looking at how the public thinks President Obama is doing in general and on specific issues, and so far, he is faring pretty well, although the percentage of Americans that disapprove of his handling of the federal deficit and controlling spending outnumber those who give him positive marks.

A Gallup poll conducted May 29-31 has Obama's overall job approval ratio at 61 percent to 34 percent which is lower than his personal favorability ratio of 67 percent to 32 percent. The margin of error is 3 points and the poll included adults, not just voters.

Deeds, a state senator, received 42 percent in the poll, which surveyed 535 likely voters from Friday through Sunday. He is well ahead of former Democratic National Committee chairman Terry McAuliffe (30 percent) and former state Rep. Brian Moran (21 percent).

The poll said that Deeds over the past two months has more than tripled his support, from 12 percent to 40 percent, in the populous northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C., the home base of both McAuliffe and Moran. Deeds is from a rural county on the West Virginia border.

Boosted by undecided voters breaking for him, Deeds clocks in at 40 percent to McAuliffe's 26 percent and Moran's 24 percent, with 10 percent still not having made a choice. The margin of error is 3 points.

Americans who favor allowing openly gay men and lesbian women to service in the military has risen from 63 percent in 2004 to 69 percent, according to a Gallup poll conducted May 7-10.

Gallup said that while liberals and Democrats provide the most support for that view, the biggest increase has been among conservatives - who have gone from 46 percent in favor to 58 percent - and people who identify themselves as weekly churchgoers, whose support has risen from 49 percent to 60 percent.

Dick Cheney (Getty)

Fifty percent view Pelosi unfavorably compared to 34 percent who have a positive view of her, while Cheney is viewed unfavorably by 54 percent and favorably by 37 percent. Pelosi's favorable-to-unfavorable ratio was about even six months ago; Cheney's, while still negative, improved from March when 63 percent viewed him unfavorably.

The poll, taken June 1-3 of 600 likely voters, has state Sen. Creigh Deeds at 30 percent, former state Rep. Brian Moran at 27 percent and former Democratic National Committee chairman Terry McAuliffe at 26 percent.

The poll said that 17 percent of likely voters are undecided. It also has a sampling margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points, so the Democratic race is a toss-up.

Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor arrives on Capitol Hill today to continue her meetings with senators. (Getty)

Forty-five percent of those polled named traits they liked about Sotomayor while 26 percent named traits they disliked.

On the positive side, 20 percent liked her background and experience, 11 percent felt positively about her because of her gender, 9 percent because she is a minority candidate, and 8 percent because of her personal character.

We're a little late on this one, but CNN/Opinion Research released a poll this week showing that there is no clear front runner in the hearts and minds of Republicans for the 2012 nomination.

Twenty-two percent said they'd most likely support former Arkansas Gov. Mick Huckabee, who had his moment during the 2008 GOP primaries before falling by the wayside, while 21 percent each would back Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. The poll was conducted May 14-17 and had a margin of error of 4.5 points. Thirteen percent like former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and 6 percent backed former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush.

Christie, a former U.S. Attorney, led Corzine 51 to 38 percent in a Rasmussen Reports poll of likely state voters conducted June 3. Christie won the GOP primary race against conservative Steve Lonegan, former mayor of Bogota, on June 2. The margin of error is 4.5 points.

A SurveyUSA poll released yesterday and conducted May 31 - June 2 had McAuliffe at 35 percent, Deeds at 29 percent and Moran at 26 percent with the margin of error being 4.4 points.

"What makes this race even tougher to call is that when undecided voters statewide were prodded to choose one of the three candidates, many were breaking to McAuliffe and, to a lesser extent, Moran," said Suffolk's David Paleologos. "With the remaining undecided at 22 percent, the Deeds lead could be fluid, and the final tally could hinge on last-minute campaign ads, momentum, the weather, and get-out-the-vote efforts from all the candidates."

Sen. Orrin Hatch meeting with Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor on Tuesday. (Getty)

Registered voters approve of the nomination by 55 percent to 25 percent with 20 percent undecided, according to the poll which was conducted May 26 - June 1. Democrats overwhelmingly support the choice 80 percent to 5 percent, independents agree by 53 percent to 26 percent while Republicans disapproved 47 percent to 30 percent.

A Guantánamo detainee walks inside an open-air yard at the detention facility. (Getty)

By an even bigger margin, 74 percent to 23 percent with 2 percent undecided, the public opposes moving any of the detainees into prisons in their states, something Obama also said he intended to do. On both issues, Obama ran into a buzzsaw on Capitol Hill in May when the Senate voted to strip funding to close Guantánmo and for transferring any prisoners to the U.S.

A SurveyUSA poll released Wednesday has Terry McAuliffe holding a slight lead over his two opponents in the June 9 Democratic primary for governor, but the contest is volatile and half of likely primary voters may change their mind over the next six days.

The poll, taken of 517 likely Democratic primary voters between May 31 and June 2, gives McAuliffe, a former Democratic National Committee chairman, 35 percent of the vote. State Sen. Creigh Deeds had 29 percent, former state Rep. Brian Moran had 26 percent and undecided voters comprised the remaining 11 percent.

Deeds leads among Democratic voters who say their minds are made up, and he's also the strongest candidate in hypothetical November matchups that pair Republican nominee Bob McDonnell against each of the three Democrats. McDonnell and Deeds are essentially in a dead heat, with McDonnell at 44 percent and Deeds at 43 percent. McDonnell leads McAuliffe by 47 percent to 40 percent and Moran by 48 percent to 37 percent.

Voters disagree by 71 percent to 19 percent with a court ruling in which Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotormayor participated that rejected a reverse discrimination suit by a group of white New Haven, Conn. firefighters, according to a Quinnipiac University poll conducted May 26 - June 1. Ten percent were undecided. The firefighters' suit was filed after results of a promotion test were thrown out because no blacks scored high enough to qualify.

The 71 percent said that when the case comes before the U.S. Supreme Court, the justices should rule in favor of the firefighters while 19 percent said they should uphold the city's decision. That sentiment was held by a majority of voters across party lines, although it was highest among Republicans and independents. Whites favored promoting the firefighters by 76 percent to 16 percent, Hispanics by 68 percent to 24 percent and blacks, to a lesser degree agreed by 53 percent to 33 percent.

One of the issues sure to come up during the confirmation process for Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor was her involvement in a ruling that rejected reverse discrimination claims by white firefighters in Connecticut. The firefighters said the city of New Haven violated their rights by throwing out the results of an officers' promotion exam where minorities had received disproportionately low scores. It's a case that will ultimately come before the Supreme Court.

How does the public feel nowadays about affirmative action issues?

A Pew Research Center survey, conducted March 31 - April 21, said only 31 percent of people it surveyed believed "we should make every effort to improve the position of blacks and minorities, even if it means giving them preferential treatment." Sixty-five percent disagreed.

Creigh Deeds

McAuliffe had led in PPP's last poll with 29 percent to 20 percent each for Deeds and Moran. The pollster cites two factors in the shift: the Washington Post endorsement of Deeds, which pushed his support in vote-rich northern Virginia from 11 percent to 23 percent, as well as decline in McAuliffe's support in areas where Moran has launched TV ads attacking him.

Americans oppose President Obama's decision to close the Guantánamo detention center by more than 2-to-1 and reject by more than 3-to-1 the idea that suspected terrorists housed there be moved to prisons in their own states, according to a USA Today/Gallup poll conducted May 29-31.

By 40 percent to 18 percent, those polled said the use of Guantánamo had made the U.S. safer.

Former U.S. Attorney Chris Christie leads former Bogota Mayor Steve Lonegan 54 percent to 30 percent in the race for the GOP gubernatorial nomination that will be decided in tomorrow's primary, according to a Fairleigh Dickinson University poll conducted May 26-30.

The poll also looked at the ideological breakdown and stands on issue between those who support Christie or Lonegan. Christie is generally thought to have stronger support among moderates while Lonegan appeals to conservatives. The results:

The Dallas Morning News earlier this year called Hispanic Republicans an "endangered species," and new Republican Party chief Michael Steele, the GOP's first black chairman, has said that the party must broaden its appeal, but a Gallup poll conducted May 1-27 shows just how daunting a task that may be.

The survey said only 11 percent of Republicans are Hispanics or blacks or members of other races. More than six in 10 are white conservatives and the rest whites with other ideological leanings. That compares with 36 percent of Democrats who are Hispanics or non-white and 27 percent of independents.