Biden's Job Approval Rating Is The Lowest Of All Post WW2 Presidents Except Jimmy Carter: Gallup
By Megan Brenan of Gallup
President Joe Biden’s job approval rating during his 10th quarter in office averaged 40.7%, marking a one-percentage-point uptick from last quarter, which was the lowest of his presidency.
The approval average for the president's 10th quarter, which spanned April 20 through July 19, is based on Gallup polls conducted in May, June and July. Biden’s average quarterly approval rating has not risen above 42.0% since his third quarter in office, when it registered 44.7%. His average ratings in the first two quarters of his presidency were 56.0% and 53.3%.
In the most recent poll, conducted July 3-27, approval of Biden has edged down three points to 40% from June’s reading, which came after the passage of a bipartisan bill to raise the debt ceiling and was the highest since last summer. During the latest poll’s field period, Biden attended a NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, and reaffirmed the United States’ commitment to helping Ukraine in its war against Russia.
Democrats’ approval rating of Biden is 86%, Republicans’ is 2%, and independents’ is 38%. Ratings among Republicans and independents are slightly lower than in June, while Democrats’ rating is four points higher.
Biden’s 10th-Quarter Rating Is Better Than Only Carter’s
Of the 11 post-World War II U.S. presidents elected to their first term, just one -- Jimmy Carter -- had a lower 10th-quarter average approval rating than Biden. Amid a nationwide energy crisis and high gas prices in 1979, Carter’s approval averaged 30.7% in his 10th quarter, 10 points lower than Biden’s.
Four presidents registered majority-level 10th-quarter average approval ratings: Dwight Eisenhower, John Kennedy, George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush. Another two, Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton, averaged just below 50% in their 10th quarters, while Barack Obama (46.8%), Ronald Reagan (44.4%) and Donald Trump (42.7%) each had higher ratings than Biden.
Biden, Harris Remain Underwater in Favorability Ratings
As with his job approval rating, Biden is underwater in his personal favorability rating, as 41% of Americans view him favorably and 57% unfavorably. His current favorable reading is similar to Gallup’s previous measure late last year (44%) but is considerably lower than the majority-level favorability he garnered after he won the 2020 election and at the start of his presidency.
Although most of Biden’s favorability ratings since 2007 have been below 50%, majorities of Americans viewed him favorably on several other occasions. These include the period shortly before and after the 2008 election, when he was Obama’s running mate; in the aftermath of Trump’s victory in 2016; and before he announced his presidential candidacy in 2019.
Far more Democrats view Biden favorably (88%) than do independents (39%) or Republicans (4%).
At 38%, Vice President Kamala Harris’ favorability rating is slightly lower than Biden’s and similar to her late 2022 reading, as is her unfavorable rating of 53%. Nine percent have either never heard of Harris or don’t have an opinion of her.
In eight readings on Harris taken since 2019, a majority of Americans have viewed her favorably only once -- just before she took office as vice president, when 53% held a favorable opinion of her (and 36% unfavorable). In three readings as a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2019, Harris was unknown to about three in 10 U.S. adults, and roughly the same percentages viewed her favorably and unfavorably. After Harris ended her campaign and was named as Biden’s running mate in 2020, she was better known, and Americans were about evenly divided in their favorable and unfavorable ratings of her.
Harris is also broadly liked by Democrats, as 80% view her favorably, while her ratings among independents (37%) and Republicans (5%) are similar to Biden’s.
Bottom Line
Biden’s average approval rating for his 10th quarter in office was a lackluster 40.7%. This is lower than all other post-World War II presidents except Carter, who did not win reelection in his second bid for the White House. Biden’s favorability rating is a similar 41% and reflects the deep partisan divide that splits the nation.
However, where presidents stand at this point in the election calendar does not always correspond with the election outcome. George H.W. Bush, who had the highest 10th quarter average, was defeated for a second term, but Reagan and Obama made comebacks from relatively weak ratings to win reelection.
