New Jersey voters overwhelmingly favor Gov. Chris Christie (R) for reelection in 2013, but are far more divided over his potential future as a 2016 contender, according to a poll released Tuesday by Quinnipiac University.
The survey finds Christie maintaining a substantial lead over his likely Democratic opponent, Barbara Buono, taking 60 percent to her 25 percent.
Christie's approval rating, which hit record highs in the past two months, remains at a sky-high 70 percent. Fewer than a quarter of voters disapprove of his performance.
But those numbers don't necessarily translate into home-state support for his presidential aspirations.
New Jerseyans were split almost evenly on whether they'd like to see Christie run for president or not, with 44 percent saying he wouldn't make a good president, compared to 41 percent who said he would.
While Republicans overwhelmingly said they'd vote for Christie as governor, just two-thirds thought he'd make a good president. Independents were 30 points more likely to support Christie against Buono, than to say he'd make a good president, and the minority of Democrats who backed him at the state level also shrank for a presidential contest.
The Quinnipiac poll surveyed 1,129 registered voters by phone between March 19 and 24.
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