New Alaska Poll: "The Honeymoon Is Coming to an End" for Palin - approval rate dropping

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http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2008/09/back-home-sarah.html

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New poll numbers show the Alaska governor's approval rating has taken its biggest hit since her election in 2006. "The Honeymoon Is Coming to an End," Ivan Moore Research of Anchorage said in its report.

True, Palin's approval rating of 68% surely must cause envy among President Bush (check out his numbers here) and members of Congress (go here).

But the new figure for Palin is down from a high of 82% in January, which she replicated in the days following her surprise selection Aug. 29 as John McCain's running mate.

Also, her disapproval rating in the survey of 500 likely voters conducted Saturday through Monday was at 27% -- double what it was at the beginning of the month. The survey's margin of error was plus or minus 4.4%.

Predictably, the biggest erosion in good feelings about Palin occurred among Alaskan Democrats. But there also was a measurable slip in her standing among independent/third-party voters.

Chalk it up to the bruising effects of a national campaign and all the harsh scrutiny that brings? Probably. And, Moore notes, lots of governors would be pretty happy with Palin's 68% approval mark.

That's "still pretty positive," he says. "But I suspect we've only caught the slump kind of halfway through here."