Poll puts Wolf above Corbett

HARRISBURG - Democrat Tom Wolf holds a 22-point lead over Republican incumbent Tom Corbett in the governor's race heading into the summer campaign season, according to a poll released Wednesday.

The Franklin and Marshall College poll of registered voters showed Wolf leading Corbett 47 percent to 25 percent, with 27 percent of respondents undecided.

Wolf has maintained a consistent 20- to 25-point lead in the four polls released since the York businessman swept the four-way Democratic primary in May. "The consensus is Corbett is significantly behind," said poll director G. Terry Madonna.

One problem Corbett has faced, Madonna said, is his inability to bring together disparate factions of Republican legislators to advance his agenda - an issue playing out now as the post-deadline budget debate drags on in the state House.

The General Assembly sent a $29.1 billion budget to Corbett's desk by the June 30 deadline, but by late Wednesday, Corbett had not signed it, in part because legislation to overhaul public worker pensions - one of his priorities - is unresolved.

The poll of 502 Pennsylvania registered voters showed that 59 percent believed the state is "off on the wrong track."

Only a little more than one in four believed Corbett is doing an "excellent" or "good" job, but that represents an increase from the 23 percent who rated him as such in a January Franklin and Marshall poll.

About half of Republicans surveyed, or 53 percent, said Corbett deserved a second term, but only 8 percent of Democrats and 16 percent of independent respondents agreed.

Madonna said that although Corbett's support among the GOP is up slightly, the governor needs stronger GOP backing for a win in November.

Those who gave Corbett poor marks say their ratings are based on his handling of education and economic issues. The survey was conducted between June 23 and 29 and had a plus or minus error of 4.4 percent.