GOP Congress earns low marks from public

Just 14 percent of Americans approve of the way Congress is doing its job, according to a new Gallup survey released Wednesday, and they do not seem all that enamored with Republican leaders in the House and Senate, either.

That is the lowest share of congressional approval seen by Gallup this year, though it is not the lowest in history — a paltry 9 percent said they approved of Congress’ job performance in the days after the government shut down in October 2013.


A majority of 54 percent expressed dissatisfaction with the job performance of John Boehner (R-Ohio), who is currently serving his third term as speaker of the House. Just 23 percent view him favorably, his lowest number since becoming speaker in 2011, though he had a similar share of 27 percent approval in March, according to Gallup’s results.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is not as well known as Boehner, but 41 percent of Americans said they see him in an unfavorable light, while 37 percent said they had no opinion of him. Just 22 percent said they see him favorably.

Among Republicans, too, Boehner and McConnell are not that well-liked. Just 37 percent of self-identified Republicans said they have a favorable view of Boehner, compared with 42 percent unfavorable and 20 percent with no opinion. McConnell earned a 34 percent favorability rating among Republicans, with 32 percent unfavorable and 34 percent who had no opinion of their Senate leader.

As Gallup points out in its analysis, the approval ratings for Boehner and McConnell are close to those held by their immediate Democratic predecessors, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.). In October 2010, 29 percent of Americans saw Pelosi in a favorable light, compared with 56 percent who did not. A month before last year’s midterm elections, just 21 percent had a positive opinion of Reid, compared with 45 percent who did not and 34 percent who had no opinion of him.

The share of Americans approving of Congress has steadily declined since October 2001, when 84 percent had a favorable view of the legislative body just a month after the Sept. 11 attacks.

The poll was conducted Aug. 5-9, surveying 1,011 adults nationwide via landlines and cellphones with an overall margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.