Biden’s Popularity on the Ground As Midterm Elections Approach

Nearly half of Americans disapprove of the Biden Administration according to a recent poll made by USA Today. Midterm elections are getting closer and Biden’s unpopularity could cost the Democratic party seats in Congress. 

What’s behind Biden’s unpopularity? Only 39% of Americans approve of Biden´s administration, and only 16% strongly support the president. In the presidential elections in 2020, Joe Biden beat his former running-mate Obama by getting 51,3% of the vote.

Since the elections, Biden has lost support each month consistently. In March 2022 a CBNS poll showed his popularity had dropped to 44%, three months later, the rate has fallen 3 points. 

The mistrust of Americans has many sources. The one reason that affects everyone equally is the economic crisis that has inflated the prices of everyday products, especially gasoline. But there are ideological reasons that have contributed to these figures too. 

According to the New York Times political analyst Alexander Burns, Biden won the elections by reaching the progressive left-wing voters with the narrative of revoking Trump’s policies and expanding the progressive agenda. But the president also reached the center-right, Bush-nostalgic voters with the proposal of a right-wing state more moderate than Trump. 

Burns blames Biden’s unpopularity on his multiple efforts to please both groups; he states that this strategy has caused an identity crisis in his administration. 

Although the president has accomplished great achievements such as the release of the $1.9 trillion pandemic-relief law, his incapacity to bow to the requirements of one of these groups has caused him discrepancies with both parties.

Although Democrats are well aware of the disadvantage of having as its leader an unpopular president, the USA Today poll showed that voters split 40%-40% when asked for what party they would vote for if elections were held today.