scorecardresearch Skip to main content

Trump becomes fastest president to attain majority disapproval job rating

Just over half of Americans, 51 percent, disapproved of the job President Trump’s performance just eight days into his new administration, according to a Gallup poll.

Since 1945, when Gallup began tracking presidential job approval, no president has ever reached or exceeded the 51 percent disapproval mark so early on in their presidency.

Barack Obama reached 50 percent disapproval 579 days into his presidency, but didn’t surpass that level until day 936, Gallup data show.

George W. Bush did not reach majority disapproval until day 1,205.

Bill Clinton reached the 50 percent disapproval mark fairly early on — day 152 — but didn’t crack the majority disapproval line until day 573.

Advertisement



Three presidents since 1945 — Gerald Ford, John F. Kennedy, and Dwight D. Eisenhower — never reached majority disapproval territory at all during their time in the Oval Office.

Trump began his presidency with record-high 45 percent disapproval, according to Gallup, and it appears the series of controversial measures he has rolled out early on, along with tweets and statements from him and his administration, have hurt his rating.

Trump reached the 51 percent disapproval mark on Saturday, eight days into his presidency and a day after he issued an executive order closing the nation’s borders to refugees and to citizens from certain countries.

As of Sunday, the latest data available from Gallup, Trump’s disapproval rating stood at 50 percent. On the flip side, 43 percent of Americans said they approved of the job Trump had done so far, as of Sunday, according to Gallup.

Trump has paid close attention to apparent measures of his popularity, including his social media following and crowd sizes at his inauguration and at his campaign rallies.

He asserted last week, without evidence, that the reason he didn’t win the nationwide popular vote was because millions of people cast ballots fraudulently for Hillary Clinton.

Advertisement



Then again, Trump has played down poll results that were not in his favor, questioning their accuracy and describing them as phony and rigged. And many polls during the campaign underestimated his support around the country and his odds of winning the presidency.

Gallup says its presidential job ratings are based on telephone interviews with approximately 1,500 adults nationwide. The margin of error is ±3 percentage points, the company says.

Days until majority disapproval rating
This graphic shows how many days each president served before at least 51 percent of Americans said they disapproved of the job they were doing as president, according to surveys conducted by polling company Gallup.
Donald Trump
8
Barack Obama
936
George W. Bush
1,205
Bill Clinton
573
George H.W. Bush
1,136
Ronald Reagan
727
Jimmy Carter
851
Gerald Ford - Never reached
Richard Nixon
1,659
Lyndon B. Johnson
1,575
John F. Kennedy - Never reached
Dwight D. Eisenhower - Never reached
Harry S. Truman
524
Days until 50 percent disapproval rating
This graphic shows how many days each president served before at least 50 percent of Americans said they disapproved of the job they were doing as president, according to surveys conducted by polling company Gallup.
Donald Trump
7
Barack Obama
579
George W. Bush
1,205
Bill Clinton
152
George H.W. Bush
1,136
Ronald Reagan
692
Jimmy Carter
851
Gerald Ford - Never reached
Richard Nixon
1,659
Lyndon B. Johnson
1,419
John F. Kennedy - Never reached
Dwight D. Eisenhower - Never reached
Harry S. Truman
524
SOURCE: Gallup

Matt Rocheleau can be reached at matthew.rocheleau@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @mrochele