A new poll shows California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s approval rating has dropped to an all-time low as he continues to face accusations that he is running a “shadow” presidential campaign as a backup plan to President Biden.The late October poll, published on Tuesday by the UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll co-sponsored by the Los Angeles Times, showed Newsom with a 44% approval, down 11 points from February. A total 49% of registered voters in the poll said they disapproved of Newsom’s performance, a 10 point rise since February and an all-time high. The poll states that Newsom’s “recent actions in taking a much more active role in national Democratic politics appear to be related to his recent decline as voters here hold decidedly mixed views about his taking on this role at a time when California is facing increasing budgetary challenges and is dealing with a host of other pressing problems.”MAHER HITS NEWSOM, WHITMER FOR RUNNING ‘SHADOW’ 2024 CAMPAIGNS, CREDITS DEAN PHILLIPS FOR CHALLENGING BIDEN Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)”It’s an outlier,” Newsom spokesperson Nathan Click told Fox News Digital pointing to a Morning Consult poll published last week that showed Newsom with a 56% approval rating with likely voters compared to 38% disapproval. The polling slide comes as Newsom continues to face criticism for boosting his national profile with trips to China and Israel and becoming a prominent fixture on television, including inside the spin room at a recent Fox Business GOP presidential debate. CALIFORNIA GOV. NEWSOM TRAVELS THE GLOBE WHILE THESE PROBLEMS PLAGUE HIS STATE President Joe Biden arrives to board Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews (ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images)Newsom also recently challenged GOP presidential candidate Ron DeSantis to a debate, which the Florida governor accepted. That debate will air on Fox News Channel on Nov. 30 and will be moderated by Sean Hannity.”This trip here, he’s trying to build a base,” GOP Rep. Doug LaMalfa, who represents California’s First Congressional District, told Fox News Digital last month after Newsom traveled to China. “He’s running the back channels until Biden takes himself out and the party says man we’re going to get killed on this.”CLICK TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP California Gov. Gavin Newsom during his trip to China. (Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office)”With Trump looking more and more like a likely nominee pulling ahead in most places from what I’ve seen then the Dems are, I think I saw in our notes here, that they would need to break the glass and reach in for the Newsom fire extinguisher.”Over the weekend, Democratic Sen. John Fetterman took a swipe at Newsom saying that he is effectively running for president but didn’t have the “guts” to admit it.A Monmouth University poll released earlier this month showed that 76% of voters agreed Biden, 80, was “too old” to serve another term, compared to just 48% who said the same about Trump, 77. Newsom has repeatedly denied any plans of running for president in 2024.Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub. Andrew Mark Miller is a reporter at Fox News. Find him on Twitter @andymarkmiller and email tips to AndrewMark.Miller@Fox.com.
