By Rick Pearson, Chicago Tribune reporter

Voters don't know much about Republican governor candidate Bill Brady, but they prefer him by a slim margin over Gov. Pat Quinn, a Democrat they dislike, a new Tribune/WGN-TV poll shows.

Half of those surveyed disapprove of the sitting governor's job performance in the 19 months since he replaced the scandal-ridden Rod Blagojevich. Only 26 percent have a favorable impression of Quinn. And 70 percent of those surveyed don't like how Quinn has fared on his hallmark issue of reforming government.

By contrast, four in 10 voters hold no opinion of Brady, a veteran lawmaker from downstate Bloomington. And just 19 percent have an unfavorable view of him.

If anything, the poll results indicate why Quinn's new round of Chicago television ads attacking his major rival use the tagline "Who is this guy?"

Brady collected 37 percent to Quinn's 32 percent support, while another 19 percent were undecided in the poll of 600 likely registered voters conducted Aug. 28 through Wednesday. Former Democratic lieutenant governor nominee Scott Lee Cohen, who's now running as an independent for the top post, had 4 percent, and Green Party candidate Rich Whitney and Libertarian Party contender Lex Green each had 2 percent. The survey's error margin was plus or minus 4 percentage points.

The poll shows Quinn still has time to try to define Brady in voters' minds if he can muster enough money. But the governor also faces the challenge of reversing widespread voter unhappiness with his job performance.

Only 28 percent of those surveyed say they like what Quinn has done since he took over following the impeachment and removal of Blagojevich after his December 2008 arrest on federal corruption charges. That's down 11 percentage points from a year ago. More than half of voters who call themselves independents and one-third of voters who say they're Democrats dislike what Quinn has done as governor.

One major problem for Quinn is his support among African-American voters, a key Democratic constituency. Though the governor held a 54 percent to 10 percent advantage over Brady among black voters surveyed, nearly a quarter were undecided. And just as many African-Americans liked Quinn's job performance as disliked it: 38 percent.

Quinn has been a fixture on the Illinois political stage for three decades, viewed by the establishment as an outsider gadfly most of that time. Among those surveyed, 42 percent have an unfavorable view of Quinn and 30 percent expressed no opinion. Brady was viewed favorably by 28 percent of the state's voters; 40 percent still haven't formed an opinion.

Despite Brady's social conservatism in an Illinois GOP long split along ideological lines, the poll found Republicans much more unified behind their nominee's candidacy than Democrats are behind Quinn. Brady had the backing of three out of four Republicans, while Quinn had just 56 percent support among Democratic voters.

Though Quinn may be the recipient of what has revealed itself nationally as overall unhappiness toward politicians, some of his efforts in office have not been received warmly by voters.

Only about a third of voters support Quinn's call for an income tax increase to help offset the state's massive $13 billion deficit. Brady's plan for unspecified budget cuts and opposition to higher taxes was backed by 46 percent, even though the state's shortfall is equal to about half of Illinois' annual operating budget, and independent analysts question whether cuts alone will solve the problem.

More telling, barely half of Democrats say they support Quinn's call for higher taxes, while a quarter of them side with Republican Brady, who has said he won't detail his proposed budget cuts until after the Nov. 2 election.

At the same time, more voters back Brady's call for more widespread business tax cuts to spur job creation than get behind Quinn's reliance on passage of the state's first public works construction program in more than a decade.

But a telling sign for Quinn may be voter reaction to one of his most recurring themes — that he worked to restore trust in state government following the Blagojevich scandal. Under Quinn, lawmakers enacted the first-ever campaign-donation limits, though some criticized them for having loopholes. The General Assembly also agreed to put on the November ballot a proposed constitutional amendment allowing a limited form of recall of a governor.

Yet 70 percent of the state's voters said they don't believe Quinn has done enough to curb corruption in Illinois government, including nearly six of 10 Democratic voters and about three-quarters of those who classify themselves as independents.

The results of the survey coincide with the kickoff of Illinois' fall general election campaign, a season politically charged with ethical scandal and economic malaise following heavily contested February primaries that left both nominees bruised.

Quinn narrowly survived a Democratic challenge from Comptroller Dan Hynes, who criticized the governor for a controversial cost-cutting prisoner early release program. Quinn said he was unaware of the program and canceled it, but kept his prisons director on the job until he resigned last week.

The governor also dumped a Blagojevich-appointed inspector general just as the watchdog recommended discipline against Quinn's chief of staff for improperly sending three campaign e-mails from a state account. Quinn denied the inspector general's dismissal was retribution.

But it has been Quinn's inability to stabilize the state's financial situation — allowing a Democratic-controlled legislature to largely dictate the terms under which Illinois government is running a $13 billion debt with $5 billion in unpaid bills — that has raised questions about his leadership.

Since taking office, Quinn backed several failed plans to raise the state income tax, with varying amounts of tax relief for lower-income workers. Quinn still maintains an income tax is needed and said he will push for one after the election.

Brady had been considered a long shot to win the Republican nomination, but he defeated his Senate colleague, Kirk Dillard, of Hinsdale, by 193 votes. Still, Brady was the first choice of only about 20 percent of GOP primary voters in a crowded field.

Despite Quinn's gaffes, Brady's general election campaign has hardly been smooth. Shortly after the election, he sponsored hot-button legislation to ban same-sex marriages and civil unions and allow the mass euthanasia of companion animals. He later handed those off to another Republican senator.

Brady has used his campaign to focus on his fiscal conservatism rather than his social conservatism in promoting a theme of private-sector job creation to help rescue the state's economy, believing pocketbook issues are the top concern of the state's voters.

The millionaire real estate developer also has faced criticism over his votes in the legislature to help spur development near property he owned in central Illinois and for using tax laws to legally avoid paying federal income taxes the past two years.

Copyright © 2010, Chicago Tribune