The death toll from America’s COVID-19 crisis continues to rise, with over 12,000 conronavirus fatalities being reported in the United States as of late Tuesday afternoon, but new polling data suggests that voters aren’t blaming President Donald Trump for the grim news, according to the Washington Examiner.
A survey released on Monday by Zogby Analytics reported that Trump held an overall approval rating of 51% among likely voters. Meanwhile, a slightly lower number of respondents had a favorable impression of how he has responded to the coronavirus pandemic.
The official summary of the survey results stated, “In our latest Zogby Poll, 48% of likely voters rated Trump’s handling of the Covid-19 crisis positively, while 52% rated it negatively.”
Positive polling for Trump
The poll went on to say that while the president’s approval rating lags behind that of infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D), Trump still performs better than former Vice President Joe Biden or his Democratic opponents on Capitol Hill.
“Voters were not as positive about Trump’s response to the crisis as they were with Dr. Fauci of NIAID or Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York, but the president still received better marks than Congress, Joe Biden and Senator Bernie Sanders,” the survey analysis explained.
The data also showed that Trump continues to be a polarizing figure, with voter perception of him varying widely among different demographics.
Demographic divergence
In terms of regional support, the poll found that “[t]he president’s job performance was rated best by voters in the east (54% at least somewhat approve/44% at least somewhat disapprove) and south (58% at least somewhat approve/41% at least somewhat disapprove), while his performance received a less positive rating in the Central/Great Lakes (46%t at least somewhat approve/51% at least somewhat disapprove) and West (41% at least somewhat approve/57% at least somewhat disapprove).”
Age was also a relevant factor in how respondents viewed the president, with those in Generation X being more positively disposed to him than millennials, according to the Zogby results.
One apparent bright spot from Trump was found within the black community, as the poll declared that “Trump’s numbers continue to improve with African American voters; his current job approval rating is 36% at least somewhat approve/63% at least somewhat disapprove.”
“He is producing results”
“There is no doubt there have been major mishaps from the federal government, such as, a lack of testing kits and getting needed medical supplies to ‘hotspots’ in NYC and New Jersey, but the public isn’t ready yet to completely blame Trump for the federal government’s failures,” pollster Jonathan Zogby told the Washington Examiner.
“It might make the mainstream media and his detractors scream, but to his supporters and almost half the country, he is producing results,” he continued.
“He is also speaking honestly when he says we cannot stay in lockdown forever. It might not be what we ultimately do, or the right thing, but he’s being honest that life will have to go back to a semblance of normality in the future. It might not be reality but it’s comforting to some people in this moment of unpredictability,” Zogby concluded.
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