Tuesday, October 25, 2011 8:05 am

Fifty-one percent of Tennesseans approve of the job Bill Haslam is doing as the state’s governor, according to the latest MTSU Poll.

Although this is the narrowest of majorities, it dwarfs by more than 3 to 1 the portion of Tennesseans who say that they disapprove of the job Governor Haslam is doing (16 percent). However, a noteworthy slice of the Tennessee population, 33 percent, has yet to express a decisive opinion about the job Haslam is doing as governor, opting instead to say they don’t know or would rather not answer the question.

Opinions among Tennessee’s independents are similar to those of Tennesseans in general.

A 48 percent plurality of independents approve of the job Haslam is doing, while only 16 percent disapprove, and 36 percent don’t know or refuse to answer.

Ambivalence toward Haslam is greatest among Tennessee’s Democrats, a 39 percent plurality of whom either don’t know whether they approve or disapprove of the job Haslam is doing, or decline to answer the question, as compared to 33 percent who approve and 29 percent who disapprove.

Unsurprisingly, a broad majority of Governor Haslam’s fellow Republicans in the state, 71 percent, approve of the job he is doing, while only 7 percent disapprove, and 21 percent don’t know whether they approve or disapprove, or decline to answer the question.