Chris Christie’s ratings jump after decision on presidential race

When Mitt Romney picked up the support of Chris Christie, the question was just how much a big political hug from the governor of New Jersey was worth. Two polls released Wednesday say that Christie’s approval rating is on the rise – at least in the Garden State, which in recent presidential races has gone to the Democrats.

Christie, who flirted with a late-starting presidential run before announcing that he still had no plans to run this cycle, endorsed former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney on Tuesday. Romney, who has reasserted himself as the front runner in many national polls, praised the endorsement of the pugnacious governor, who has won a following in some GOP circles.

In a Quinnipiac University poll, New Jersey voters gave Christie a 58% approval rating. Just 38% said they disapprove of the job the governor is doing. In August, the split was 47% to 46%.

Although 84% backed Christie’s decision to stay out of the presidential race, two-thirds of voters, including three-quarters of the state’s Republicans, said it was very likely that Christie would have won the GOP nomination had he launched a campaign.

“Overwhelmingly, his New Jersey neighbors thought ... Christie did the right thing in walking away from the presidential race -- even though most voters think he could have won both the nomination and the White House,” said Maurice Carroll, director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute.

“They think the governor’s brief run as Republican flavor-of-the-week was good for New Jersey, and most aren’t bothered by his out-of-state travels,” added Carroll. “And there’s nothing like some national attention to get the folks back home to appreciate you a little more. We don’t know if it’s cause and effect, but Christie’s approval rating, especially among women, is way up.”

Christie also achieved a new high in a Monmouth University/NJ Press Media Poll, with 55% of voters praising him and 37% disapproving of his job performance. That poll also found an especially sharp increase in support for Christie among women.

Any GOP candidate will need all of the help that can be earned from Christie’s new luster in New Jersey, which went for President Obama by 15 percentage points in 2008 and supported Democrat Sen. John Kerry by six points over former President George W. Bush in 2004.

The Quinnipiac poll was conducted by phone from Oct. 5 to Oct. 10, with 1,186 New Jersey registered voters. The margin of error is plus or minus 2.9 percentage points.

The Monmouth University/NJ Press poll interviewed 817 adults between Oct. 5 and Oct. 9. The margin of error is plus or minus 3.4 percentage points.