Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker has been ranked the governor with the highest approval rating in the United States, marking the fourth time this year the Massachusetts governor has held this title.
Morning Consult, a private technology and media company, conducted the report by having over 250,000 registered U.S. voters complete an online survey from Oct. 1 to Dec. 31 2017, according to the company’s methodology statement.
The survey is conducted every quarter, and each participant indicates whether they “approve or disapprove of the job performance of their U.S. governors,” according to the Morning Consult website. Survey participants are also given the option to choose if they strongly approve, somewhat approve, somewhat disapprove, strongly disapprove, do not know, or have no opinion about their governor’s policies.
Terry McCormack, a spokesperson for the Massachusetts Republican Party, told The Daily Free Press that when it comes to fixing the state government, Baker has risen above the ranks.
“The governor has a pretty strong focus on reforming government and working collaboratively with everyone who is willing to do so … so that you can achieve results for the people of the Commonwealth and being relentless about fixing [the] state government, especially after the previous Democratic administration had a number of failures when it came to managing the government,” he said.
McCormack said Baker’s ability to stay focused on results and give back to the people of Massachusetts, especially when it comes to taxes, is what places Baker above other governors.
“The governor [has] been very sure on making tax payers get the best deal possible for their taxes, so he has been really focused on reforming government from state agencies basically across the board,” McCormack said. “I think that focus on fiscal discipline and on taxpayers getting a good product in state government, for what they’re putting in, is something that the voters have really come to appreciate.”
Lisa Clark, 35, of South Boston, said she thinks Baker is deserving of his ranking because he always acts with the people of Massachusetts’ best interests in mind.
“Charlie Baker is the kind of governor where his agenda is whatever the people’s agenda is,” Clark said. “He is the perfect representation of what a public servant should be and he always makes us feel heard.”
Maximos Nikitas, the communications director for Massachusetts Young Republicans, wrote in an email that he credits Baker’s high ranking to the governor’s efforts to improve different sections of the government and make them accessible to everyone.
“[It] is owed to his success at crafting and implementing policies that reflect collaboration between leaders in the private [and] public sectors alike,” Nikitas wrote. “His is a bipartisan, prudential approach that has bettered the economy, improved our schools, brought jobs back to the Massachusetts and made government at every level more efficient and inclusive.”
Nikitas wrote that because of the aforementioned reasons, Baker has gained the trust of the majority of people living in the Commonwealth. He wrote that Massachusetts can trust that Baker is going to be well informed regarding issues that affect everyone.
“The people of Massachusetts — who value accomplishment more than ideology — trust that the Governor’s approach is always informed by the best interests of the Commonwealth and her citizens,” Nikitas wrote. “I am confident that his popularity will only increase in the months and years ahead.”
Carolyn James, 48, of Roxbury, said she thinks Baker has been a more productive governor than those in different states.
“He has done so much in his time in office, a lot more, I think, than other governors have,” James said. “I think he deserves to be recognized for that.”
Dan McCarthy, 62, of Back Bay, said he thinks Baker is the best U.S. governor because Baker’s policies are representative of all Massachusetts residents and do not discriminate based on party affiliation or income distribution.
“He helps the working class, the poor, business people, you name it,” McCarthy said. “Charlie Baker’s a governor for all. That’s why he’s the best.”
Hannah Schoenbaum contributed to the reporting of this article.
