Voters are almost evenly split in how they feel about the job Gov. Dannel Malloy is doing.
Quinnipiac University released poll results on Wednesday that show that 44 percent of voters surveyed approve of him, while 45 percent disapprove. In June, Malloy's approval rating was 38 percent.
"Gov. Dannel Malloy's overall approval rating is up slightly because he is doing better with Democrats. This lukewarm 44 - 45 percent score is not bad for a governor who raised the income tax across the board his first year to deal with an inherited deficit," Quinnipiac University Poll Director Douglas Schwartz said.
Republicans disapprove of Malloy, 66 percent to 24 percent; while Independents disapprove of him, 48 percent to 40 percent. However, Malloy is getting support from his own party, 64 percent to 27 percent.
"We have tried to be consistent in not saying much about polls because -- what's there to say? Polls come and go, numbers go up and down. The Governor always does what he thinks is best for the state and the right thing to do," Roy Occhiogrosso, senior advisor to Malloy, said in a statement.
In 2010, Malloy became the first Democratic governor to be elected since William O'Neill, who served from 1980 to 1991. In 2009, then-Governor M. Jodi Rell's approval rating was 59 percent to 34 percent, which was low for her.
One high-profile issue for Malloy is education and his proposal to limit teacher tenure. The people Quinnipiac polled approve of this plan, 54 percent to 35 percent, with 51 percent of Democrats approving it and 47 percent of voters in union households.
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Voters surveyed have an overwhelming 66 percent to 12 percent favorable opinion of public school teachers, but have a 32 percent to 27 percent unfavorable opinion of the teachers' unions.
Sixty seven percent of people polled said teachers who do an outstanding job should get merit pay and 62 percent said it should be easier to fire bad teachers. Voters in union households support both measures.
