Our Perception of President Biden
Bottom Line: It’s an understatement to suggest President Biden has his work cut out for him in leading his agenda forward post his State of the Union speech outlining it. Seldom has a president started the second half of a first term in a poorer position. In fact, by way of approval ratings, President Biden’s current rating of 38% is the lowest by a President when delivering a State of the Union address in a third year in office. And it’s being driven by broad disapproval across demographics.
Range of net disapproval by age:
- 10% (65+) to 17% (18-34 & 50-64)
Range of net disapproval by education:
- 0% (postgraduate) to 18% (non-college graduates)
Range of net disapproval by sex:
- 3% (women) to 28% (men)
Also, President Biden’s approval rating among independents is lower than his overall average approval rating at a paltry 26%. And then there’s the all-important approval ratings by state, that is provided President Biden is planning on running for reelection. Biden currently retains a net positive approval rating in seven states: California, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Vermont. That means a generic ballot candidate would potentially hold a 433-105 Electoral College advantage today. In Florida, President Biden’s approval rating is far lower than the national average with only 34% of Floridians approving of his performance. He currently has a net negative 25% approval rating in our state. Notably, only 22% of Florida’s independent voters currently approve of his performance.
What we currently see is a historically unpopular president who has yet to make his 2024 intentions known. While we wait to see what will be, his weakness clear across the country and with almost all demographics will make it much more challenging to effectively advance his political agenda. That was already a given with Republicans in control of the House. It's doubly challenging given his status with us.