If Gov. Mary Fallin's all-out support for ending the personal income tax is unpopular, it's not showing up in her approval ratings. Fallin announced her tax phaseout in early February. She's had to compromise since then, but this hasn't diminished her popularity.
The Sooner Survey says Fallin is as popular as any Republican at this point in a first term, matched only by Frank Keating in 1996 when he was still benefiting from his handling of the Oklahoma City bombing. That year, Republicans took all Oklahoma congressional seats for the first time in history.
This could happen again (Democrat Dan Boren isn't seeking another term) for reasons that involve Fallin and other factorss that have more to do with the unpopularity of Barack Obama. Indeed, Fallin and Obama are polar opposites in popularity polls. She has a favorable approval rate of 64 percent among all voters, 86 percent among Republican primary voters and 89 percent among tea party sympathizers.
Obama? More than 60 percent of Oklahomans view him unfavorably, according to Sooner Survey. Among Democrats who have an unfavorable view of the president, Fallin has a 76 percent favorable rating.
