It’s a far cry from the near 70% approval rating Obama enjoyed at the start of his presidency, but for the first time since last May, half of the country approves of of how he’s doing as president, according to Gallup.
In the latest Gallup poll, 50% of respondents said they approved of Obama’s job performance, versus 43% who said they disapproved. In results released yesterday, that split was a tad better for Obama, 50%-42%. Those findings mark the first time Obama’s approval has reached the symbolic 50% mark in Gallup’s poll since the end of May 2010.
While Obama’s approval rating has improved, there’s no guarantee that it’s the start of an upward trend. In releasing the poll results, Gallup noted that they sometimes see an optimism boost in polling done at the start of the year. Further, the polling was done at a time when Obama was largely off the media map while vacationing in Hawaii, and immediately after the passage of several widely popular bills, such as the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.
The current TPM Poll Average still has Obama with a negative approval rating, with an average 46.1% of Americans approving of his presidency versus 49.1% disapproving.
The latest Gallup poll was conducted December 29 and January 2-3 among 1,500 adults nationwide. It has a margin of error of 3.0%.
