The specific duties of elected officials vary considerably from one branch of government to the next and between the different levels of government. But one common responsibility shared by virtually all those in elected office is to balance the interests, values, and priorities of their constituents. This is no easy task, particularly for those in powerful, high-profile positions who represent hundreds of thousands if not millions of Americans.

Consider, for example, the U.S. president. Subject to the individual judgements of over 250 million voting-age Americans, most presidents in recent decades have had approval ratings below 50%. According to Gallup survey data, George H.W. Bush is the only president since the Kennedy assassination with an average approval rating above 60% – and even he was voted out of office after a single term. (Here is a look at the most – and least – effective presidents in U.S. history.)

Like the president, each of the 50 sitting U.S. governors has the role of a chief executive. And as the highest-ranking and highest-profile elected official in state government, governors are also subject to constant public scrutiny. And some appear to be doing a better job than others.

Based on 2023 survey data, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine has an approval rating of 56% and a disapproval rating of 37%. Based on these figures, DeWine ranks as the 21st most popular state governor in the country.

DeWine, a Republican, took office in 2019 and is currently serving his second term as governor.

All data in this story is from Morning Consult, a public opinion data research company. Governors were ranked by their approval rating. Ties were broken by disapproval ratings, and in the case when governors shared the same approval and disapproval rating, the governor with the largest survey sample size ranked higher.

 

Rank	Governor	State	Approval rating (%)	Dissaproval rating (%)	In office since	Party
1	Phil Scott	Vermont	78	14	2017	Republican
2	Mark Gordon	Wyoming	67	24	2019	Republican
3	Chris Sununu	New Hampshire	66	29	2017	Republican
4	Jim Justice	West Virginia	66	31	2017	Republican
5	Andy Beshear	Kentucky	63	32	2019	Democratic
6	Josh Green	Hawaii	62	22	2022	Democratic
7	Sarah Huckabee Sanders	Arkansas	61	27	2023	Republican
8	Kay Ivey	Alabama	61	33	2017	Republican
9	Ned Lamont	Connecticut	61	34	2019	Democratic
10	Kristi Noem	South Dakota	61	37	2019	Republican
11	Brian Kemp	Georgia	60	33	2019	Republican
12	Brad Little	Idaho	60	33	2019	Republican
13	Bill Lee	Tennessee	59	31	2019	Republican
14	John Carney	Delaware	58	31	2017	Democratic
15	Greg Gianforte	Montana	58	33	2021	Republican
16	Laura Kelly	Kansas	58	34	2019	Democratic
17	Jared Polis	Colorado	58	35	2019	Democratic
18	Janet Mills	Maine	57	40	2019	Democratic
19	Doug Burgum	North Dakota	56	26	2016	Republican
20	Glenn Youngkin	Virginia	56	32	2022	Republican
21	Mike DeWine	Ohio	56	37	2019	Republican
22	Ron DeSantis	Florida	56	38	2019	Republican
23	Gavin Newsom	California	56	38	2019	Democratic
24	Gretchen Whitmer	Michigan	56	40	2019	Democratic
25	Wes Moore	Maryland	55	16	2023	Democratic
26	Maura Healey	Massachusetts	55	21	2023	Democratic
27	Kim Reynolds	Iowa	55	39	2017	Republican
28	Spencer Cox	Utah	54	30	2021	Republican
29	Henry McMaster	South Carolina	54	36	2017	Republican
30	Tim Walz	Minnesota	54	41	2019	Democratic
31	Josh Shapiro	Pennsylvania	53	26	2023	Democratic
32	Eric Holcomb	Indiana	53	34	2017	Republican
33	Mike Parson	Missouri	53	34	2018	Republican
34	Michael Dunleavy	Alaska	53	35	2018	Republican
35	Philip Murphy	New Jersey	53	39	2018	Democratic
36	Roy Cooper III	North Carolina	52	37	2017	Democratic
37	Gregory Abbott	Texas	52	43	2015	Republican
38	JB Pritzker	Illinois	52	43	2019	Democratic
39	Tony Evers	Wisconsin	52	43	2019	Democratic
40	Kathy Hochul	New York	51	41	2021	Democratic
41	John Bel Edwards	Louisiana	51	41	2016	Democratic
42	Kevin Stitt	Oklahoma	51	42	2019	Republican
43	Jay Inslee	Washington	51	43	2013	Democratic
44	Michelle Lujan Grisham	New Mexico	51	43	2019	Democratic
45	Dan McKee	Rhode Island	50	37	2021	Democratic
46	Joseph Lombardo	Nevada	49	25	2023	Republican
47	Tate Reeves	Mississippi	48	42	2020	Republican
48	Katie Hobbs	Arizona	47	36	2023	Democratic
49	Jim Pillen	Nebraska	45	30	2023	Republican
50	Tina Kotek	Oregon	42	39	2023	Democratic

 

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