Donald Trump’s High Disapproval Now Matches Level Of Other One-Term Presidents, Report Says

Donald Trump’s disapproval on his handling of the coronavirus crisis has reached a new high, and it could have dire implications for his re-election chances.

A new ABC News/Ipsos poll released on Friday showed that 67 percent of Americans disapprove of the way Trump has handled the coronavirus crisis — a significant reversal from March when 55 percent approved of how he was responding. The slide comes as the United States has reached all-time highs in the number of new cases, with much of the surge concentrated in states with Republican governors who followed the president’s lead in calling for the economy to re-open at a time when public health experts said it was not yet safe to do so.

As McClatchy wrote, the dip in coronavirus approval also aligns with Trump’s overall approval ratings, which have also gone down during the coronavirus crisis and amid a growing national movement in the wake of George Floyd’s killing. The outlet pointed out that an aggregate of polls from FiveThirtyEight showed that roughly 56 percent of Americans disapprove of the president’s job performance, with 40 percent approving.

That matches up with past presidents who failed to win a second term in the White House, the report stated.

“In the latest Gallup poll, 38% of Americans approved of Trump, earning comparisons to other one-term presidents George H.W. Bush and Jimmy Carter who had less than 40% approval rating in the June of their reelection years. H.W. Bush had a 38% approval rating in late June, according to Gallup, while Carter had a 31% approval.”

McClatchy added that Trump has seen falling support among some important groups, including independent voters and Republicans.

There have been other concerning signs for Trump’s re-election chances. As The Inquisitr noted, he had remained a favorite for a second term among oddsmakers until early June, when his handling of the growing national protests led to widespread criticism.

In a press release noting the changes, the oddsmaker Bookies.com suggested that former Vice President Joe Biden had been on the upswing for weeks, but Trump’s response to the protests allowed his rival to finally surpass him.

“It seems Trump’s words and actions, or lack thereof, in dealing with nationwide protests has played the biggest part,” the release noted.

Trump’s slide in approval ratings could have implications beyond his own re-election odds, political analysts say. As the president’s ratings have gone underwater in a number of key swing states, it is also seen as a troubling implication for vulnerable Senate Republicans who are up for re-election in November.