As Her Approval Rating Nosedives, Dem Gov Gina Raimondo Struggles To Connect With Rhode Island Voters 

With polls showing Democrat Governor Gina Raimondo in serious jeopardy of losing her re-election, with her job approval rating dropping below 40 percent in multiple public polls, her inability to connect with Rhode Island voters continues to cause headaches for her campaign. Scott MacKay of Rhode Island Public Radio writes that Raimondo has appeared “condescending” to the public, with a noticeable “lack of a ground-level presence,” as she is seen “more often seen at photo-ops or talking from behind a microphone than meeting and greeting Rhode Islanders in small groups or at ethnic celebrations.”

MacKay also notes Raimondo’s continuing issues with labor leaders in her own party as well as management failures with the state’s social services that have led to more discontent with her. As Rhode Islanders continues to feel the effects of her failed leadership, the Democrat governor’s inability to connect with the voters of her state will continue to threaten her chances of a second term in office.

Scott MacKay writes for Rhode Island Public Radio:

“The latest polls show her job approval ratings as mediocre. A WPRI survey showed her locked in a tight reelection rematch… What’s worse, skeptical voters  think the state is on the wrong track…

One element in Raimondo’s lagging favorability is the hangover from her pension overhaul. Many state and teacher retirees and their families are still angry. She foolishly has never made peace with the teacher unions,  part of the Democratic base. 

Another is the view that our first women governor is more Ivy Leaguer than Rhode Islander, that she comes across as condescending. Is she Gina from Greenville, where she grew up, or Gina from Harvard and Yale, where she was educated?

Some of this has to do with her lack of a ground-level presence. She is more often seen at photo-ops or talking from behind a microphone than meeting and greeting Rhode Islanders in small groups or at ethnic celebrations…

There are the management failures, particularly the failing social service and medical benefits computer system known as UHIP, which is spit as an expletive at the Statehouse.

Her campaign seems worried about the damage former secretary of state Matt Brown, who is exploring a run for governor, could cause in a primary or as an independent in a general election.”