President Joe Biden’s poll numbers continue to sink further into the doldrums, as the RealClearPolitics average of polls shows his approval rating under 40%.
The RealClearPolitics poll of polls has Biden’s approval rating at 39.7%, a record low mark, with an average of 55% disapproval. Biden’s approval ratings were dragged down by a new poll showing him at a record low rating, and another poll showing him in the high 30s, and another poll showing his approval languishing in the mid-30s.
Biden’s approval rating dropped to a new low, according to a Politico/Morning Consult poll of 2,006 registered voters, conducted between June 4-5. Just 39% of voters approved of Biden, while 58% disapproved. That number is a 3-point drop from the previous poll, which found Biden’s approval at 42%. It is also significantly lower than former President Trump’s approval at the same point in his presidency. Trump’s approval ratings in early June 2018 stood at 45% approval, 52% disapproval, Morning Consult reported.
Biden also generated far stronger negative feelings than positive. Just 37% of Democrats said they “strongly approve” of Biden’s presidency, while fully 80% of Republicans said they “strongly disapprove.” The poll also found the two major parties evenly split in the Generic Congressional Ballot, 42%-42%, with 16% undecided.
In addition to the Politico/Morning Consult poll, an Emerson College poll of 1,148 registered voters, conducted between May 24-25, found that Biden’s approval rating stood at just 37.6%, while 52% disapproved. The poll also shows trouble for Biden in the 2022 midterms and the 2024 election. According to Emerson, Republicans hold a 3-point lead on the 2022 Generic Ballot, with 45.3% of voters supporting the generic Republican candidate, while 42.3% support the generic Democrat. The poll also found Biden losing to Trump in a hypothetical 2024 matchup: Trump garnered the support of 44.3% of voters, while Biden took just 41.8%. That hypothetical represents a significant change, as voters told Emerson that they voted for Biden over Trump in 2020 by a margin of 46.7%-42.2%.
On individual issues, the economy — including jobs, inflation, and taxes — was overwhelmingly the most important issue in the minds of voters. A near-majority of respondents, 48.7%, said that the economy was the most important issue facing the country. The next closest issue was crime, which just 11.5% of voters said was the most important.
The worst results for Biden came from a Quinnipiac poll of 1,576 U.S. adults, conducted between June 3-6. Among all respondents, Biden’s approval sat at a meager 33%, with 55% disapproval. Those numbers match Biden’s previous all-time lows in Quinnipiac’s polling, which he dropped to first in January, then again in April. Among registered voters, Biden’s approval rating was only slightly better; just 35% of voters approved of Biden, while 56% disapproved. Those numbers also matched Biden’s previous all-time lows.
Biden’s approval was even worse on individual issues: among all Americans, just 28% approved of Biden’s handling of the economy; just 32% approved of his handling of the issue of gun violence; and 42% approved of his handling of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Asked which issue was most important to the country, a plurality of Americans, 34%, said inflation was most important, including pluralities in every single demographic group. The second most important issue was gun violence, which 17% said was the most important issue.
Other polls that factored into the RCP average included: a Reuters/Ipsos poll of 1,000 adults conducted June 6-7, which showed Biden’s approval rating at 41% approval-56% disapproval; Rasmussen’s daily tracking poll of 1,500 likely voters, conducted June 5-7, which showed him at 41%-57%; an Economist/YouGov poll of 1,314 registered voters, showing a 43%-51% approval rating for Biden; and a Harvard/Harris poll of 1,963 registered voters, which found Biden at 41% approval-55% disapproval.