Disapproval rose to 61%, while Republicans’ confidence in the President’s ethical qualities and leadership abilities also declined significantly.
US President Donald Trump’s approval rating dropped to a low of 37% in the Pew Research Center survey, which attributes the drop in support “exclusively to Republicans”.
Trump’s popularity in January was below the 40% recorded in the last Pew measurement, in September, and the previous minimum (38%, in August) since the beginning of his second term, a year ago, detailed the research center.
Disapproval of his performance rose to 61%, while 50% considered his actions “worse than expected” and 52% expressed support for “few or none” of his policies.
Only about one in five, 21%, considered his performance to be “better than expected”, and 27% expressed support for “all or most” of his policies.
“The drop in support has come exclusively from Republicans. Last year, 67% said they supported all or most of Trump’s plans and policies. Today, 56% say so,” said the Pew Research Center.
Republican confidence in Trump’s qualities has also declined, with less than half of the President’s supporters, 42%, expressing “extreme or a lot of confidence” that he “acts ethically”, compared to 55% the previous year.
The poll was published after Trump kicked off his campaign for the November midterm elections with a rally in Iowa on Tuesday, in the midst of a crisis following the shooting deaths of two protesters by immigration agents in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
The proportion of Republicans who identify in Trump “respect for democratic norms” also fell to 52%, and the proportion of those who believe he has the mental capacity for the role fell to 66%.
Considering the general population, 51% said they had “little or no confidence” in the president’s leadership abilities, while 50% felt the same about his physical health.
Regarding relations with the legislative branch, 61% of Republicans believe that their party’s members of Congress “are not obligated to support Trump if they disagree with him,” compared to 55% a year ago, while 82% of Democrats believe that their representatives “should oppose Trump, even if it makes solving problems difficult,” compared to 70% who felt the same way a year ago.
The survey was carried out by telephone and online, between January 20th and 26th, among 8,512 adults, with a margin of error of 1.4% and a confidence level of 95%.
