The economy in the United States is “excellent”, according to 22% of American voters surveyed in a Quinnipiac University National Poll released Tuesday. The poll found another 49% of voters said the economy is “good”, 20% said it is “not so good” and 8% said it is “poor”.
About 52% of voters said they are better off financially now than they were three years ago (2016), while 21% said they are worse off and 23% said they are the same.
American voters gave President Donald Trump a negative 38 –57% approval rating, compared to a negative 41 – 55% approval in early May.
Trump has also gotten mixed grades on how he’s handling the economy, with 48% approving and 45% disapproving. He’s also received negative grades for handling other issues, including 37 – 58% for foreign policy; 39 – 53% for trade; 40 – 50% for the nation’s policy toward China; and 37 – 47% for the nation’s policy toward Iran.
“The nation’s economy is pretty darn good and President Donald Trump’s approval numbers are pretty darn awful,” Tim Malloy, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Poll, said. “So what to make of the good news, bad news mashup and how to correct it?
“For the moment, the disparity leaves the president on shaky re-election ground.”
The poll found Trump will begin his reelection campaign for 2020 with some difficulty, as 54% of voters said they will “definitely not vote” for him, compared to 31% who said they will “definitely vote” for him and 12% who will “consider voting” for him.
Currently, the only other presidential contender, Democrat or Republican, with a positive score is former Vice President Joe Biden with a 49 – 39% favorability rating.
Favorability ratings for other Democrats are negative or mixed:
- 41 – 48% for Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont;
- 32 – 41% for Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts;
- 27 – 30% for Sen. Kamala Harris of California;
- 20 – 32% for former U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke of Texas;
- 23 – 31% for Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey;
- 23 – 19% favorable for South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg;
- 8 – 45% for New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio.
“It’s former Vice President Joseph Biden and then there’s everyone else, descending from Sen. Bernie Sanders to Sen. Elizabeth Warren to Sen. Kamala Harris to a bunch of people most Democrats have never heard of,” Malloy said.
The poll was conducted from May 16-20 with 1,078 voters nationwide with a margin of error of +/- 3.7 percentage points. It includes 454 Democrats and Democratic leaners with a margin of error of +/- 5.6 percentage points.
