Independent polling conducted after Gov. Ned Lamont’s reelection kickoff found Connecticut voters give him a solid approval rating, but a significant minority are “indifferent or neutral” about him serving a third term.

A Nutmeg State Poll released Monday by the University of New Hampshire Survey Center found voters approve of his performance by a margin of 55% to 38%, a net approval rating of +17, virtually unchanged since September.

Lamont’s challenger for the Democratic nomination, Rep. Josh Elliott of Hamden, barely made an impression among likely Democratic voters after four months of campaigning. Nearly 80% had no opinion of him, while 69% had a favorable opinion of the two-term governor.

If a Democratic primary were held today, the poll found Lamont outpolling Elliott, 55% to 7%, with 37% undecided and 2% saying they would write in someone else.

The data released Monday offered no matchups between Lamont and either of the two Republican candidates, Sen. Ryan Fazio of Greenwich or former Mayor Erin Stewart of New Britain.

Overall, 34% of voters were enthusiastic (11%) or satisfied (23%) about Lamont’s candidacy for a third term, while 31% were dissatisfied (21%) or angry (10%), 28% indifferent or neutral, and 6% unsure.

Among Democratic voters, the poll found little evidence of the dissatisfaction that liberal Democratic lawmakers have expressed about Lamont over his refusal to embrace a more progressive tax code or higher spending.

Eighty-seven percent of self-described liberals, 76% of progressives and 63% of moderates had favorable opinions of Lamont. Forty-eight percent of socialists had a favorable opinion, but only 15% of socialists were negative.

Asked to name the most important problems facing Connecticut, the cost of living was named by 22%, following by taxes (18%), housing (15%), jobs and the economy (10%) and immigration (5%). Four percent mentioned national issues or the federal government.

The poll was conducted from Nov. 12 to 17 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5% percent on questions posed to all voters and 6.5% on questions posed only to likely Democratic voters.

The survey is based on “a probability-based web panel” recruited by phone, text-to-web, or mail-to-web surveys sent to randomly chosen individuals.

A chilly start today, but it will be a quiet day ahead after the early clouds, sprinkles and flurries move out! Looking quiet for much of the day tomorrow before rain arrives late. The heavy rain moves out with just a few scattered showers possible for Wednesday’s busy travel. Turning wind & chilly for Thanksgiving and colder & windier for all of your shopping plans Friday.

Early this morning: Variable clouds with a flurry or shower clearing & chilly with lows in the 30s.

Today: Clouds moving out! Mostly sunny & a bit windy for the morning through noon with highs 45-51.

Tonight: Some increasing cloudiness & frosty with lows 27-35.

Tomorrow: Mostly cloudy with rain arriving 3-6pm. Highs in the lower to mid 50s.

Wednesday: Mostly cloudy and mild with a few isolated showers. Highs in the upper 50s to around 60!

Thanksgiving Day: Sun & clouds, becoming windy and colder. Highs near 50, then falling throughout the day. Wind chills in the 30s for the afternoon with wind gusts 30-35mph.

Friday: Sun and clouds, blustery and cold! A few flurries possible. Winds could occasionally gusting to 40mph. Highs in the 40s with wind chills in the 20s and teens.

Saturday: Sun and clouds and continued cold. Breezy with highs near 40.

Sunday: Becoming cloudy with evening rain developing. Highs in the mid to upper 40s.

Monday: Rain tapering. Highs in the mid 50s.

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Though federal electric vehicle incentives are gone in the United States, some states still have them. As we’ve reported already, these states include: California, Colorado, New York, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and Vermont.

Add another to the list: Connecticut, which has actually increased its new battery electric vehicle incentive from $500 to $1,000. The plug-in hybrid incentive is $500.

For new and used fully electric vehicles, there is also an incentive for income-qualified residents for up to $3,000 more. So, for an income-qualified resident, the total incentive could be $4,000.

For plug-in hybrids, there is an additional incentive of $1,500 for income-qualified applicants, bringing the total to $2,000.

For used fully electric vehicles, there is an additional income-qualified incentive. Combining the standard incentive of $1,000 with the additional incentive totals $5,000.

For a person who qualifies for the full incentive, a used Chevy Bolt at $5,000 less than the sticker price might be a steal! For a used Chevy Equinox EV, the same might be true, depending on the driver’s needs.

A used Tesla Model 3 with an asking price of $23,000 would be knocked down to $18,000. A used Tesla Model Y at $29,000 would be $24,000. These could be good deals for many drivers, if they don’t care about Elon Musk’s politics or social media activities.

One of the claims that online trolls, critics, haters, and the unaware try to make is that electric vehicles “cost too much,” but somehow completely overlook two facts. One is that there are multiple affordable electric vehicles now and there is an active used EV market with many good deals. Another is that in some cases, but not all, the total cost of ownership for fully electric vehicles can be less than their fossil-fuel-burning counterparts.

Additionally, there are costs to human health from burning fossil fuels. “Dr. Mark Mitchell, co-chair of the Connecticut Equity and Environmental Justice Advisory Council, called the emissions news ‘disturbing.’ Vehicle-based emissions are significant contributors to air pollution-related conditions, such as asthma, premature birth, autism, ADHD and Alzheimer’s Disease. ‘This disproportionately affects low-wealth communities … and also disproportionately affect people of color of all income levels, due to historical and systemic racialized policies, such as the location of highways and other sources of pollution,’ Mitchell said in a statement.”

Furthermore, a big cost of burning fossil fuels is climate change impacts. Gasoline and diesel fuel can’t get any cleaner and their contribution to climate change impacts must be considered in the cost of buying internal combustion engine vehicles. These costs go far beyond the sticker prices.

The state of Connecticut still combusts fossil fuels to generate electricity used to charge EVs, but it has also improved its clean electricity generation.