(07/29/10) -

Americans Evenly Divided on How President Obama is Performing

Numbers for Congress improve after a particularly low showing in June.

Numbers for Congress improve after a particularly low showing in June.

The approval rating for U.S. President Barack Obama did not improve dramatically this month, while slightly more Americans than last month are voicing a favorable opinion of the U.S. Congress, a new Angus Reid Public Opinion poll has found.

In the online survey of a representative national sample of 1,013 American adults, 45 per cent of respondents (+1 since June) approve of Obama’s performance, while 46 per cent (-4) disapprove.

The level of strong approval for the U.S. President (12%, -2) continues to trail the level of strong disapproval by double digits (28%, -3).

Four-in-five Republicans (82%, +1) are dissatisfied with Obama, while a similar proportion of Democrats (78%, +1) are content with the American president.

As was the case last month, a majority of Independents (53%, -7) disapprove of Obama’s performance, while about two-in-five approve of it (38%, +3).

The approval rating for the U.S. Congress stands at 23 per cent this month (+5), while 64 per cent of respondents disapprove of its actions (-8).

The level of strong approval is four per cent (+2), while a third of Americans (35%, -5) are strongly dissatisfied.

This month, Congress received more favorable reviews across the entire political spectrum. Two-in-five Democrats (42%, +6) provide a positive assessment of the legislative branch, along with 16 per cent of Independents (+5) and 12 per cent of Republicans (+5).

Analysis

The disapproval rating for Obama is no longer at the 50 per cent mark, but Americans are evenly split in their assessment of their president. Obama managed to close the approval gap among Independents (from -25 in June to -15 this month), but did not manage considerable gains among Democrats or Republicans.

Congress—following a month dominated by discussions about financial reform—bounced slightly from its dismal showing in June. The West and the South continue to be the areas where more than a third of respondents are “strongly dissatisfied” with the legislative branch.

Full Report, Detailed Tables and Methodology (PDF)

CONTACT:

Mario Canseco, Vice President, Public Affairs
+877 730 3570
mario.canseco@angus-reid.com

Methodology: From July 22 to July 23, 2010, Angus Reid Public Opinion conducted an online survey among 1,013 American adults who are Springboard America panelists. The margin of error—which measures sampling variability—is +/- 3.1%. The results have been statistically weighted according to the most current education, age, gender and region Census data to ensure a sample representative of the entire adult population of the United States. Discrepancies in or between totals are due to rounding.