Wisconsin voters still had a net positive view of Dem Gov. Tony Evers’ job performance even as a majority oppose him running for a third term in 2026, according to a new Marquette University Law School Poll.
Forty-eight percent of registered voters surveyed approved of Evers’ job performance, while 46% disapproved. That’s a slight change from the poll conducted in February, when his split was 49-44.
Poll Director Charles Franklin noted Evers was above 50% in most polls conducted in 2024, and his average job approval for his entire term is 50.4% with 41.2% disapproving.
“He remains the most popular of the political figures in the state that we asked about, but by no means is it a dominant popularity, as you can see,” Franklin said.
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The poll also asked voters if they wanted to see Evers run for another term; 42% said they did, while 55% were opposed to him running again.
Among Dems, 83% backed Evers running again, while 93% of Republicans were opposed. The split among independents was 37-50.
Still, more voters backed Evers running again than felt the same about then-GOP Gov. Scott Walker in early 2016.
That poll found 36% wanted Walker to seek a third term, while 61% said he shouldn’t.
Sixty-nine percent of Republicans wanted Walker to run again, while 93% of Dems and 59% of independents didn’t.
Wisconsin voters also didn’t want to see Donald Trump run again when asked that question in August 2022 with 65% opposed to Trump seeking the White House after his loss in 2020.
Meanwhile, 41% of voters approved of the job the state Legislature is doing, while 50% disapproved.
And Franklin said the state Supreme Court had its best net approval rating in the seven times the poll has asked that question, with a 49-38 split.
Wisconsin voters’ views of President Donald Trump haven’t changed much since February, and those who voted for him last fall are overwhelmingly sticking with him.
Forty-seven percent of voters approved of the job Trump is doing, while 52% didn’t. In February, his split was 48-51.
His support ticked down slightly among Republicans at 90%, compared to 92% in February. Meanwhile, 98% of Dems disapproved.
His backers aren’t expressing much remorse over supporting him in November. Of those surveyed who said they voted for Trump last fall, 93% approved of the job he’s doing.
“We’re not really seeing a significant shift away from the president at this point,” Franklin said.
Voters overall said:
- By a 57-31 split that tariffs hurt the economy.
- By a 55-31 split that Trump’s policies will increase inflation rather than reduce it.
- By a 67-30 split that the reconciliation bill will increase the deficit rather than reduce it.
The poll of 873 registered voters was conducted June 13-19 with an overall margin of error of 4.7 percentage points. The sample was split for policy questions, and those results had a margin of error of plus or minus 6.6 percentage points.
The overall sample was 46% Republican, 42% Dem and 12% independent when leaners were counted as partisans. In 2024, the sample averaged 45% GOP, 42% Dem and 12% independent.
