Schwarzenegger trails on Calif. ballot measures: poll

By Adam Tanner

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Californians still oppose
measures backed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on a special
November 8 ballot, according to a survey released on Thursday
but taken before he expanded campaigning to a wider array of
voters.

The former actor has faced an uphill battle over measures
that would boost his powers over the budget, change how
California draws its electoral districts, limit union political
contributions and make teacher tenure harder to get.

The November ballot is also an important referendum on the
Republican Schwarzenegger himself a year before he runs for
re-election.

A Public Policy Institute of California, or PPIC, survey of
2,003 Californians taken between October 16-23 found 62 percent
of likely voters opposed an initiative to limit state spending.
Only 30 percent backed it, up from 26 percent in September.

Another measure would let three retired judges rather than
state lawmakers draw legislative districts. The PPIC poll found
only 36 percent of likely voters in favor and 50 percent
opposed, with a plus or minus three percent margin of error.

Schwarzenegger has defied polls in the past by harnessing
his star power and charisma in intensive campaigning in the
final days before an election.

“The governor has a history of finishing strong,” Mark
Baldassare, PPIC research director, told Reuters.

“The challenge for him this time is really twofold: first
of all, he’s got very strong disapproval ratings among the
voters, who are opposing his measures, particularly Democrats,
and secondly, there is a very substantial amount of money that
is being spent on the ‘no’ side.”

NEW STRATEGY

Schwarzenegger has taken questions this week from mixed
television audiences rather than just hand-picked supporters.
Analysts praised his performance in the first two shows, and he
is due to make more live TV appearances before the election.

The former actor has generally avoided forums at which he
could face random questions. During the 2003 recall campaign
that brought him to office, his staff blared loud music as he
shook hands, making it hard to exchange more than a few words.

“It has been a bumpy road ever since we started, yes, and
it’s going to be a bumpy road all the way until election day,”
Schwarzenegger said this week.

“We always come from behind. We always arc at the right
time,” he continued. “What is important is what happens on the
day of the election, not what happens three weeks before, four
weeks before, five weeks before.”

The latest PPIC poll showed Schwarzenegger within striking
distance of winning two other initiatives. On Proposition 74,
would give tenure to teachers after five years rather than two,
48 percent were opposed and 46 in favor.

The survey also found 46 percent of likely voters opposed
and the same number favoring an initiative to bar unions from
making political contributions without members’ support.

In the telephone survey, just 33 percent of Californian
adults expressed approval of Schwarzenegger’s job performance,
down from 61 percent a year ago.