CNN survey shows 52% of Americans disapprove of Trump's presidency, leadership

By Asiye Latife Yilmaz

ISTANBUL (AA) – The American public is more negative than positive about US President Donald Trump's presidency and leadership, with 52% expressing disapproval, according to a new CNN poll.

The survey reveals that negative opinions outnumber positive ones in three critical areas of Trump's performance: his approval rating, his priorities, and the direction of his policies.

The CNN poll, released on Sunday, was conducted before Trump's tense Friday meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office and, thus, does not reflect public opinion on the incident.

Trump remains broadly popular among Republicans (90% approve of his job performance) and unpopular among Democrats (90% disapprove), while disapproval among independents is approaching 6 in 10 (41% approve and 59% disapprove). Earlier in February, the broadcaster reported that 43% of independents approved and 56% disapproved.

Trump's 48% approval rating ahead of his first address to Congress is higher than it was in 2017 before that year's speech at the Capitol. Trump's appearances before Congress during his first term had little impact on his approval rating.

More Americans see Trump’s policy proposals as taking the country in the wrong direction (45%) than the right one (39%), with 15% expressing no opinion on the question.

In early March 2017, just after Trump's first-term initial address to Congress, Americans were split about evenly on whether his policies would lead the country in the right or wrong direction, but by January of the following year, they said by a 12-point margin that his policies were leading the country in the wrong direction, according to CNN.

Young Americans, particularly those aged 18 to 34, are more likely to view Trump’s direction as negative, with 51% believing he is leading the country the wrong way, compared to 31% who think it is the right direction. Additionally, 61% in this group feel he has not focused enough on the nation’s key issues.

Conducted by survey platform SSRS from Feb. 24-28, the CNN Poll gathered responses from 2,212 adults selected randomly from a probability-based panel.