As President Bush's national approval ratings spiraled to an all-time low last week, experts remain unsure whether such dissatisfaction will be reflected in future Wisconsin races.
An Associated Press-Ipsos poll taken last week revealed the president's national approval rating had dropped to 37 percent. The decline in ratings may stem from national dissatisfaction with the ongoing war in Iraq, a top White House aide's felony charges and a Supreme Court nomination shake-up.
Despite such negative perceptions on a national level, local political analysts remain confident that Wisconsin will not see a shift regarding local elections.
'Right now the way that the Congressional Districts are drawn in Wisconsin, incumbents are pretty much safe,' UW-Madison political science professor David Canon said. 'I don't think Bush's troubles will affect local [Republican] incumbents because they have pretty secure seats.'
Some political observers, however, feel that Republicans will begin to distance themselves from Bush following the recent events.
Conservative groups that continue to assert such perceptions often fluctuate within the political environment.
'The College Republicans will continue to support President Bush, regardless of poll numbers,' College Republicans chair and UW-Madison senior Jordan Smith said. 'Inevitably, public moods change with events, so right now people are less favorably inclined toward the president, however, when the environment changes, political moods will change as well.'
Smith also noted that while President Bush is facing adversity on a national level, the organization's focus is presently more local.
'The College Republicans support Republican endeavors on all levels and given that there is a governor's race approaching, our focus is at a much more local level,' Smith said.
Opponents of the Bush administration remain hopeful that the negative perceptions of the president will persist, and that these recent views will continue across state and national levels.
'I think the American public is starting to see what [College Democrats] have been trying to establish the last couple of years,' said College Democrats Chair and UW-Madison junior Brian Shactman. 'They are beginning to realize how old-fashioned and out-of-touch Bush really is with the American people.'
While Congressional elections in Wisconsin will not take place for another year, other states' appointments have seen a shift reflecting that of Bush's approval ratings.
However, the local effects of recent national downward approval trends remain to be seen.
