The first poll taken since Romney's July 26 attack on Roe v Wade and his veto of a contraception bill in Massachusetts shows his support among residents of the State falling, with only 30% saying he should be given a second term.
As Romney weighs whether to forgo a reelection bid to prepare a run for president in 2008, the poll found that his chief Democratic rival for the governor's office, Attorney General Thomas F. Reilly, has continued to hold his lead over Romney. Reilly leads Romney by 51 to 38 percent in a matchup for a potential 2006 governor's race. In March, Reilly led 48 to 41 percent.
In another sign of Romney's weakness, the poll found him almost even in a matchup with Patrick, a relatively unknown Democratic candidate, with the governor getting 41 percent and Patrick 37 percent.
The portion of adults who think he should be reelected remains at a precariously low level, with 30 percent saying he should be given a second term, and 51 percent saying someone else should be elected.
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Other important findings in this poll:
-Only 16% say Romney has accomplished "a lot" as Gov
-By a margin of 55% to 30%, residents do not think Romney should run for President
-Should Romney not run for re-election, Lt Gov Healy has strong support for the GOP nomination
-In the race for the Democratic nomination, the poll found Reilly led with 31 percent, Secretary of State William F. Galvin with 12 percent, and Deval Patrick, a former Coca-Cola executive and top Clinton administration justice department official, with 8 percent. Another 35 percent were undecided and 14 percent chose other candidates.
This poll is a clear demonstration that Romney will be running for President having been rejected by his own State, widely viewed as having accomplished little and reneging on campaign promises.
It also shows that though Reilly has a strong lead over Romney, he has not secured the Democratic nomination. The fact that Deval Patrick nearly ties with Romney will cause many people to take another look at him, and consider if Reilly is the only alternative to yet another GOP Governor in Massachusetts.