According to a new Gallup survey, Americans’ approval of Congress has dipped to 9 percent, the lowest level in Gallup’s 39-year history of polling the question. Congress’ approval rating dropped to 10 percent twice in 2012, the lowest level previously recorded.
Gallup explained their findings further in a release today:
Congress approval fell to 11% in October, during the U.S. government shutdown. Although the shutdown is now history, Americans’ views of Congress have not recovered, but instead have edged lower. By contrast, Americans’ confidence in the economy has begun to improve in the last several weeks. The continuing depression in Americans’ views of Congress has occurred even though the troubles with the rollout of President Barack Obama’s signature Affordable Care Act are now dominating U.S. political news.
Public displeasure with Congress is equally rampant across political groups, with Republicans (9%), independents (8%), and Democrats (10%) giving the institution similarly low approval ratings.
Twenty percent of Democrats approved of Congress in September, but their approval plummeted to 5% in October during the shutdown. This month, Democrats’ approval improved slightly, but is still well below levels measured earlier this year.
Congress is also on track to have their lowest average yearly approval rating on record. An average of 14 percent of Americans have said they approve of Congress over the last 11 months. The previous record was set at 15 percent in 2012.
Earlier this year, Gallup asked Americans to tell them their top reasons for disapproving of Congress. Partisan gridlock and bickering topped the list.
How do you feel about your congressman’s job performance?
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