Based upon President Obama’s approval rating in 2014, some analysts are already predicting it’s possible the Democrats could lose control of the House and Senate during the Mid-term elections.
In a related report by The Inquisitr, back in 2013 Obama’s approval rating was compared to George W. Bush and the Republican president was actually more popular during the same time frame in their presidencies. The Obama approval rating was down to 42 percent although previous polls had President Obama at only 37 percent in October. As a comparison, Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Carter, George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton all exceeded a 60 percent approval rating when last measured.
A new CNN/ORC International survey indicates that Obama’s approval rating may have improved since the dark days o the government shutdown, rising from 41 percent in November and December to 45 percent. The disapproval rating has also dropped from 56 percent down to 50 percent.
CNN Polling Director Keating Holland explains where the shift in Obama’s approval rating has come:
“Leaving aside partisan demographics, Obama gets his biggest support from people who live in big cities, who give him a 56% approval rating. Three groups tie for the lowest rating for Obama in the current poll – rural Americans, senior citizens, and whites. The President scores only a 36% rating among each of those groups.”
The State of the Union address is said to have caused the increase in Obama’s approval rating. Still, much of the decline in Obama’s approval rating can be blamed on the Affordable Care Act and Republicans will be sure to highlight this during the mid-term elections. In fact, some Democrats like Senator Mary Landrieu of Lousiana are actively shunning Obama, although she didn’t denounce the President explicitly:
“I think the president is more focused on running the country than helping me in my re-election.”
Brad Dayspring , a spokesman for the National Republican Senatorial Committee, says Democrats know that Obama’s approval rating can hurt them:
“President Obama’s approval rating in the top twelve 2014 battleground states is 36 percent, yet the Democrats running for Senate there supported him an astounding 94 percent of the time. Their blind loyalty to the agenda of such an unpopular President is insanity in the eyes of the majority of voters in these key states.”
If you look back in history there is ample reason to believe that President Obama’s popularity, or lack thereof, could be a large factor in shaping 2014 politics . In 1998 and 2002, before the mid-term elections both Clinton and Bush had a good approval rating of 55 percent and 64 percent respectively and their parties went on to win seats in both the House and Senate.
Do you think Obama’s approval rating in 2014 means bad news for Democrats in the 2014 mid-term elections?