CHEYENNE - Sally Bloom, a Democrat from Evansville, has nothing bad to say about U.S. Sens. Mike Enzi and John Barrasso, but she'll be happy to see Rep. Barbara Cubin retire after this year.

"I realize that people have personal problems, and she's had a lot to deal with, but I don't think even before her personal problems cropped up that she was doing a good job representing Wyoming," Bloom said.

According to a new statewide Casper Star-Tribune poll, Bloom isn't the only Wyoming voter who feels that way.

Most voters who took part in the poll believe Enzi and Barrasso, R-Wyo., are doing a "good" or "excellent" job.

Cubin, meanwhile, received a rating of "poor" from 51 percent of voters. Just 26 percent of voters rated her performance as "good" or "excellent."

The telephone poll, taken by Mason-Dixon Polling & Research of Washington, D.C., on Jan. 18-21, surveyed 625 registered Wyoming voters from across the state who said they regularly vote in Wyoming state elections. It had a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.

The poll found that only 52 percent of voters believe Wyoming's congressional delegation provides the state with a "very strong" or "somewhat strong" voice in the nation's capital.

Forty-six percent, meanwhile, said Wyoming's congressional delegation provides the state with a "very weak" or "somewhat" weak voice. The remaining 2 percent were undecided.

Men were slightly more supportive of the delegates' performance than women. Republicans and Independents were more supportive than Democrats.

Dave Marcum, political science instructor at Laramie County Community College in Cheyenne, said the numbers don't reflect a "tremendous amount of excitement about" the state's congressional delegates.

But, he said, it's common for voters to view the performance of an individual lawmaker more favorably than the performance of a delegation, or Congress as a whole.

"When you talk about politicians on an individual basis, particularly a Mike Enzi or a John Barrasso, people are going to have pretty high ratings," Marcum said. "When you start talking about a congressional delegation as a whole, you maybe are bringing in feelings people have about not just their members of Congress but Congress as a whole."

Jim King, political scientist at the University of Wyoming, said Cubin's low performance rating is probably dragging down the whole delegation's ratings.

King also said voters may have a less favorable perception of Wyoming's all-Republican delegation now that the GOP is the minority party in Congress.

"One of the basic parts of American politics is minority members of Congress, regardless of House or Senate, have less of a voice and influence than those in the majority," King said.

'I don't think about polls'

In defense of the delegation, Enzi said it's important to remember that the delegation has one new member and one who intends to retire soon.

"Voters should rest assured knowing John, Barbara and I will continue to work hard on behalf of Wyoming and we will do it together," Enzi said.

Enzi, whose terms expires at the end of 2008, received the highest marks from voters in the poll.

Seventy-two percent of voters rated his performance as either "good" (45 percent) or "excellent" (27 percent). Seventeen percent rated his performance as "fair" and 8 percent as "poor." The remaining 3 percent were undecided.

Enzi received slightly stronger marks from men than woman, and from Republicans than from Democrats and Independents.

Earlier this week, Enzi was passed over for a seat on the Senate Finance Committee even though he was next in line for the position. Sen. John Sununu of New Hampshire was selected instead.

Marcum said a number of factors could have played into the appointment, and it's hard to tell if the loss is a reflection on Wyoming's delegation as a whole.

Enzi, in response to the poll numbers, said he focuses more on improving legislation than poll numbers.

"I don't really think about polls," Enzi said in an e-mail to the Star-Tribune. "I get feedback on my work directly from my constituents whether it be through letters, phone calls or face-to-face conversation when (my wife) Diana and I travel around the state."

Barrasso, who was appointed to the seat last year and is running for election in 2008, also received mostly strong marks.

Fifty-five percent of voters rated his performance as either "good" (35 percent) or "excellent" (20 percent). Five percent rated his performance as "poor." A full one-fifth of voters were undecided about Barrasso's performance.

"I've worked hard and steady since the day I was sworn in to office," Barrasso said in an e-mail. "That is what I promised to do. While interesting, I'll have leave the polling and politics to others."

Cumulative effect

Cubin, who plans to retire at the end of her term next year, received low marks even from Republicans. Forty-one percent of Republicans said she was doing a "poor" job.

Not everyone was down on Cubin, however. Harvey Dean Batt of Worland said Cubin has done a "wonderful job."

"I think she's forward and she tries to help people as much as she can," Batt said.

King, the UW professor, said Cubin never really clicked with voters the way Enzi and former U.S. Sen. Craig Thomas did, and she has received lots of negative publicity over the last two years.

"Whether those criticisms were legitimate or not, they are still the criticisms out there and they're what people hear, and I think that has a cumulative effect," King said.

Cubin has been criticized for missing all House votes from late October through House adjournment on Dec. 19. Her husband, Dr. Frederick "Fritz" Cubin, had been severely ill and in the Wyoming Medical Center in Casper much of last year. She vowed to remain at his side while he was hospitalized. Cubin returned to Washington earlier this month.

A call to Cubin's office for comment was not returned.

Reach capital bureau reporter Jared Miller at (307) 632-1244 or at {M3jared.miller@trib.com.