Gallup Poll: Biden’s Third-Year Approval Lowest Since Carter Administration

According to the latest Gallup poll released Thursday, President Joe Biden’s third-year job approval rating of 39.8% comes in second worst in nearly 70 years behind only Jimmy Carter’s 37.4% in 1979-80.

The survey also showed that Biden’s third year was worse than Year 1 (48.9%) and Year 2 (41%). In Year 3, 83% of Democrats approved versus 5% of Republicans, a 78-point gap that is second only to Donald Trump, who had an 82-point gap in his third year as president. That year, 89% of Republicans approved of Trump versus 7% of Democrats. Biden hit lows of 37% three times during his third year, in April, October, and November.

By comparison, Trump had a third-year approval rating of 42% from 2019-20. Dwight Eisenhower’s 72.1% from 1955-56 is the highest for a third-year president in his first term in post-World War II, according to Gallup. Biden currently sits at 41% early in his fourth year.

“Biden begins his reelection campaign with a job approval rating significantly below the 50% mark that has been associated with winning a second term,” Gallup said in its analysis. “And while some presidents have seen sharp improvements in their fourth year and won a second term, Biden’s third-year rating was worse than any of theirs, suggesting he has a bigger hill to climb.

“The key to Biden’s winning reelection may lie more in convincing a larger share of independents that he is doing a good job and is deserving of a second term. His approval rating among independents has mostly been below 40% since the fall of 2021 but was above 50% during the honeymoon phase of his presidency,” Gallup added.

Gallup conducted interviews from Jan. 2-22, 2024, with a random sample of 1,011 adults. The margin of error is +/- 4 points at a 95% confidence level.