With two weeks to go until election day, President Trump’s approval rating has almost reached Barack Obama’s numbers in 2010, before Democrats lost 63 seats in Congress.
Trump reached 44 percent in the latest Gallup poll. That’s one point below his personal best and six points higher than his approval rating a month ago.
Trump had dipped to 38 percent in mid-September, yet has has steadily climbed since.
Trump’s job approval rating is benefiting from the more intense political environment in recent weeks as the news has focused on the Senate’s confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court and the midterm elections.
Still, Trump’s current 44 percent job approval rating is a weakness for his party as they face voters in the midterm election.
Eight years ago, Obama’s Democratic Party lost 63 seats in the 2010 midterms, when Democrats held the presidency, controlled both houses of Congress, and Obama had a 45 percent job approval rating.
A 3-point increase in Trump’s job approval among independents mostly reflects more positive ratings from independents who lean Republican.
Throughout his presidency, Trump’s job approval ratings have consistently been worse than other elected presidents at similar points in their presidencies. No president had a lower job approval average than Trump did during his seventh quarter, but several presidents had similar ratings.
Republicans currently hold a 45-seat majority in the House of Representatives and a two-seat majority in the Senate.
With the president’s party averaging a net loss of 36 seats when his approval rating is below 50%, a Democratic takeover of the house seems a distinct possibility.
The Senate may be less likely to fall into Democratic hands with the Democrats defending most of the seats up for election, including several in traditionally Republican states.