He said the state should be focused on creating jobs that pay "much more than the minimum wage."

"We don't have a jobs problem in this state, we have a work problem," Walker said — a comment Burke and other Democrats were quick to attack.

Walker has countered that he was talking about the state's "skills gap" when he made the comment.

Pressed by the Journal Sentinel editorial board, Walker said Tuesday he wouldn't repeal the minimum wage, but "I don't think it serves a purpose because we're debating then about what the lowest levels are at. I want people to make, like I said the other night, two or three times that."

The PPP poll found that one-quarter of voters are more likely to support the governor because of his position on the minimum wage, but 44 percent of voters are less likely as a result of it. Thirty percent said it makes no difference.

The polling sample was nearly evenly split among Republicans, Democrats and independents.

"The minimum wage is a potent issue in the Wisconsin gubernatorial race, and continued failure to address it may haunt Republicans both this fall and in the years to come," said PPP director Tom Jensen in a statement.