POLL: VOTERS BACKING 57, 58 GOVERNOR'S PUBLICITY CAMPAIGN REVERSES OPPOSITION NOTED LAST WEEK.

Byline: Harrison Sheppard Sacramento Bureau

SACRAMENTO - Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's costly television ad campaign and statewide rallies have won wide support for his state fiscal recovery plan, twin ballot measures now backed by at least half of California's voters, according to a Field Poll released Tuesday.

The poll found that 50 percent of voters support Proposition 57, the governor's $15 billion bond measure, with 36 percent opposed. Proposition 58, his balanced budget amendment, is supported by 55 percent and opposed by 28 percent.

The poll results are a big improvement over a poll released last week by the Public Policy Institute of California, which found that only 38 percent of California voters supported the bond measure. Much of that polling occurred before Schwarzenegger launched his campaign.

Analysts said the poll is a result of the governor's personal ability to sway voters and his luck in having no organized opposition.

``There's obviously a heavy, very well-funded ad campaign for the bond measure and there's virtually no opposition to it, so it basically would have nowhere to go but up,'' said Arnold Steinberg, a Republican political strategist based in Calabasas.

The Field Poll also found that Proposition 55, the $12 billion education bond, is supported by 51 percent of voters and opposed by 40 percent. Proposition 56, which would lower the threshold for the Legislature to raise taxes and pass a budget, is supported by 33 percent and opposed by 51 percent.

Schwarzenegger co-opted most partisan opposition to his plan by negotiating changes with the Democratic Legislature in getting it placed on the ballot, and by asking Democratic Controller Steve Westly to co-chair the campaign. That left state Treasurer Phil Angelides as the only well- known Democrat to publicly work against the measure.

Some fiscal conservatives also oppose the bond measure, such as state Sen. Tom McClintock, R-Thousand Oaks, who argues the state should cut spending instead of incurring more debt.

On Tuesday, the 57 and 58 campaign emphasized the bipartisan nature of its effort by releasing a comprehensive list of hundreds of endorsements.

The list includes groups that rarely find themselves on the same side of any issue: the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association and the California Teachers Association; the state Democratic and Republican parties; almost 100 chambers of commerce and business groups; labor unions and environmental groups; and federal and state legislative leaders.

``Do we all agree on every issue? Of course not,'' Schwarzenegger said in a written statement. ``There will be times, I am sure, when we find ourselves fighting just as hard as we are today, but on the opposite sides of an issue. But when we agree, we must work together, and we are all putting aside our differences to help pass Propositions 57 and 58.''

Harrison Sheppard, [phone]

harrison.sheppard(at)dailynews.com