Gallup Poll: Trump Job Approval at 42%, Rises 4% from June

By Dana Cruz Aug 18 2020, 02:45 AM EDT

President Donald Trump now has a 42 percent job approval as commander in chief, a slight increase from his job approval rating of 38 percent in June.

The poll was conducted by Gallup to gauge Trump's performance for the month. So far, this means that more people think Trump is doing an excellent job running the country, the Newsmax reported.

There is, however, an overwhelming portion of Americans who did not give Trump job approval for issues such as the coronavirus health crisis and race relations. These two issues are at the center of the political debates leading up to the November presidential election.

Only 37 percent of the poll respondent said they were happy with how Trump handled race relations, while 62 percent did not approve.

As for the coronavirus, only 36 percent of those polled said they approve of Trump's response, while 63 percent did not agree.

The Hill noted that Trump's coronavirus response rating has fallen at a steady rate since March. Back then, it was at the height of 60 percent as states started to shut down.

Deaths related to the coronavirus have topped 170,000 in the U.S. as of Monday.

Higher Than June Job Approval

Trump's overall job approval rating has risen from what it used to be in June. Back then, two surveys showed the figure at a rate below 40 percent.

This new survey was taken after Trump came back to having semi-regular news briefings on the coronavirus. Aides have told Trump before that having him in said briefings may help him in the polls against presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.

The latest survey also showed that more independents approve of Trump compared to late June and early July. Before, only 33 percent to 34 percent of independents said they approved of Trump during that time.

Now, that job rating jumped by five points. It is sitting at a 39 percent job approval from independents.

Biden and Trump are nearly closing the gap between their job approval ratings. The lead that Biden has had significantly narrowed since June, according to a new CNN poll.

The former vice president still has an advantage over the president on some top issues, though. His choice of California Sen. Kamala Harris also proved to be a good move, as it led to positive reviews.

What Could This Mean for Trump's Campaign?

In less than three months, voters will have to cast their ballots on whether Trump gets another term in the White House.

While his job approval shows slow and small improvements, it remains lower than the 50 percent mark that has been a critical indicator for reelection.

To get his ratings up, Trump will have to work on having better efforts for race relations and the coronavirus. It has been the most important problem in Americans' eyes, and he has a lot of work to do.

His campaign may also work towards a second term if the country's economy comes to an extent where it shows clear signs of recovery.

Trump and his team will have to work on the key issues where he has been seen struggling with earlier this year.

The poll surveyed 1,031 Americans from July 30 to August 12. It has a margin of error of four percentage points.