For those wondering when the American people are going to start holding President Obama accountable for the weak economy, the answer could be: very soon. Via Ben Smith, I see this new Quinnipiac poll, which found that Obama’s favorability rating has dropped to 49 percent in what is considered one of the most reliable political bellwether states in the nation. More telling, voters there now disapprove of the way Obama is handling the economy by a 48 percent to 46 percent margin.

Says one of the pollsters:

“The economy in Ohio is as bad as anywhere in America. These numbers indicate that for the first time voters have decided that President Barack Obama bears some responsibility for their problems,” said Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute.

“Until now voters have given President Obama high ratings on the economy, blaming former President George W. Bush for their problems. They might be taking out their frustration on President Obama, possibly deciding that the change he promised has not come as quickly as they expected.”

“Ohio historically has been the prototypical swing state. One of the reasons Barack Obama won the presidency by such a wide margin is that he carried Ohio with 52 percent of the vote and captured the lion’s share of independent votes,” Brown added.

“Now, by a 48 – 46 percent margin, Ohio independent voters give the President a failing grade on the economy. These numbers indicate that he may be losing, at least for now, some of those who voted for him in November and should be an indication to the White House that his honeymoon with the voters may be ending.”

In the race to replace retiring Ohio Republican Senator Voinovich, the poll also found both Democratic candidates beating all of the Republicans in a hypothetical general election matchup, but the margins were too small to matter 16 months before the 2010 election.