WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Half of New Jersey voters say Senator Robert Menendez, D-N.J., does not deserve to be re-elected, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released on Thursday.
The poll found that 50 percent of New Jersey voters think Menendez does not deserve to be re-elected, while just 20 percent think he does deserve to be re-elected. Another 30 percent are undecided.
'This survey was conducted as federal prosecutors opened their case against U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez - perhaps poisoning the landscape,' said Maurice Carroll, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Poll.
'If Sen. Menendez is convicted, he obviously won't be in the running next year,' Carroll added. 'If he is acquitted, who knows?'
Menendez is facing federal corruption charges for allegedly doing favors for a friend in exchange for gifts, including campaign donations and private flights.
The survey also showed Menendez with his lowest job approval rating since February of 2008, with 31 percent of voters approving and 49 percent disapproving.
If Menendez is forced to leave the Senate, only 3 percent of voters said New Jersey Governor Chris Christie should appoint himself as Senator.
Another 24 percent said Christie should appoint someone else, while 68 percent said Christie should wait for the new governor to appoint a replacement for Menendez.
The survey of 1,121 New Jersey voters was conducted September 7th through 12th and has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.
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