Florida government Ron DeSantis
Ronald Dion DeSantis At least 50 Florida hospital intensive care units reached capacity A regulatory agenda for the second term of the Trump teachers union authorizes strikes if schools reopen without certain security measures MORE (R) has seen its approval plummet in recent weeks as the state has become one of the new epicenters of the coronavirus pandemic.
A survey by Mason-Dixon Polling & Strategy released on Friday shows that 45 percent of respondents said they approved of the DeSantis’ job performance, while 49 percent disapproved.
This is in stark contrast to the last iteration of the poll in March, when 62 percent of Florida voters said they approved of the job DeSantis was doing, and only 24 percent said they disapproved.
New cases of COVID-19 in Florida have skyrocketed in the past two months.
The Sunshine State was one of the first states in the country to start reopening its economy amid the pandemic, and DeSantis has previously said it will not revoke reopening measures in the state despite the increase in cases.
It has also strongly supported Florida schools returning to face-to-face classes this fall.
Teachers, educational leaders and advocates have argued that reopening schools without adequate funding and reducing the rate of coronavirus transmission puts children, parents and teachers at risk of contracting the disease.
On Thursday, Florida reported nearly 10,000 new cases of the virus and 252 deaths.
With more than 480,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19, the state is responsible for more than 10 percent of coronavirus cases in the United States.
A Quinnipiac poll conducted last week showed a similar decline in DeSantis’ popularity.
The governor’s approval rating in that poll was 41 percent, while 52 percent of respondents said they disapproved of DeSantis’ performance.
The Mason-Dixon poll surveyed 625 registered Florida voters and had a margin of error of plus-minus 4 percentage points.
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