Pre-'Bridgegate' Poll Shows Chris Christie Riding High Among Voters
By Paul Kurtz
TRENTON, N.J. (CBS) -- It remains to be seen whether the George Washington Bridge scandal eats into Governor Christie's impressive polling numbers leading up to the 2016 presidential race.
Christie has been riding high in many presidential primary surveys, most recently Quinnipiac University's "national thermometer," released just this afternoon.
Assistant poll director Tim Malloy says they asked about 1,700 registered voters, "Who is the hottest politician?" Malloy says Christie came out on top.
"His numbers were 55.5 mean temperature. It's a bit of a gimmick, but it gives you a pretty good reading on how people feel. Mike Huckabee was 51 degrees, and Hillary Clinton was down in the 48.5 area."
Democratic US senator Elizabeth Warren was a couple of degrees higher than Clinton.
Malloy says Quinnipiac staff members are scrambling for more voter feedback in the wake of the controversy that's engulfed Gov. Christie (see related story).
"Because Christie is certainly the GOP favorite, there's a chance that we will start working on another poll regarding the presidential race right away. This is a big development," Malloy says.
Results of the next poll should be released early next week.