In the latest sign Americans are dreading their general election options, negative views of Donald Trump have surged to their highest level of the 2016 campaign, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll.

Trump’s unfavourable rating far surpasses Hillary Clinton’s, even as the presumptive Democratic nominee receives her worst ratings in more than two decades in public life.

The poll finds 70 per cent of Americans have an unfavourable view of Trump, including a 56 per cent majority who feel this way “strongly.” Negative ratings of Trump are up 10 percentage points from last month to their highest point since he announced his candidacy last summer, nearly reaching the level seen before his campaign began (71 per cent).

The survey was conducted Wednesday through Sunday among a random sample of U.S. adults, coming after last week’s primary contests, but with the majority of interviews completed before Sunday’s massacre at an Orlando club.

Clinton is also seen negatively, with 43 per cent reporting favourable impressions and 55 per cent unfavourable. Attitudes have not significantly changed since last month, but negative views of the former secretary of state have ticked up to their highest level in all Post-ABC polls since 1992, when Clinton had yet to become first lady.

Unfavourable ratings toward both Clinton and Trump are higher than for any major-party presidential nominee in Post-ABC surveys from 1984 onward.

While interviews were conducted before and after the Orlando shooting, results from Sunday showed no significant differences from previous days, though it will take several days to know whether the attack and political aftermath will impact candidates’ standing.

Trump’s recent slide has reopened an advantage for Clinton, whose 55 per cent unfavourable mark is now 15 points below Trump’s. Among registered voters, Trump’s unfavourable mark exceeds Clinton’s by 13 points (69 per cent vs. 56 per cent), a break from a Post-ABC poll last month finding both candidates’ standings even at 57 per cent unfavourable among this group.

Negative views of Trump have risen among a wide range of groups, jumping by double digits among liberals and conservatives and among both Republican women and Democratic men. But his standing has also worsened among two key voting groups: independents and white Americans who do not have a four-year college degree.

Trump’s net favourable rating (favourable minus unfavourable) among non-college white people has flipped from a plus-14 in May to minus-7 in the latest survey. Among independents, Trump’s net rating has shifted from -19 last month to -38 in the latest survey, returning him to roughly the same standing as in April (-37).

Both groups widely dislike Clinton, setting up a hold-your-nose choice for many in November. Clinton’s net favourable rating of -47 among non-college white people continues to be much worse than Trump’s, while her -29 net rating among independents is slightly better.

Significant minorities of Democrats and Republicans continue to express reservations about their parties’ presumptive nominees. One-quarter of self-identified Democrats say they have an unfavourable view of Clinton (25 per cent) — a small change from 21 per cent in May despite Clinton clinching the party’s nomination last week. Clinton’s negative ratings peak among Democrats under age 50 (31 per cent, vs. 18 per cent for those 50 and older), who have been more supportive of Sanders in the primary contests this year. Those ratings could rise if Sanders concedes the contest and endorses her candidacy.

On the Republican side, an even higher 34 per cent express unfavourable views of Trump, reversing about half of the gains Trump made from April (42 per cent unfavourable) to May (28 per cent). Several Republican leaders have renounced Trump’s complaints that a the federal judge presiding over lawsuit against Trump University is biased due to his Mexican heritage, with House Speaker Paul D. Ryan saying Trump’s comments were racist.

Trump continues to be deeply unpopular with Hispanics, with 89 per cent saying they have an unfavourable view of him, his highest mark in Post-ABC polling this campaign. Three-quarters of Hispanics see Trump in a “strongly unfavourable” light (76 per cent), similar to 78 per cent last month. Clinton has a largely positive image among this increasingly Democratic group — 64 per cent favourable vs. 34 per cent unfavourable.

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Clinton’s biggest popularity struggles continue to be among men, where her unfavourable rating stands at 63 per cent, rising to 75 per cent among white men. Her standing with women is significantly better, at 51 per cent favourable and 47 per cent unfavourable. The barely positive mark—almost identical to 50-48 one month ago—is a reminder that Clinton’s success at becoming the first woman to clinch a major-party nomination for president has come without widespread popularity among women nationally.

The Washington Post-ABC News poll was conducted by telephone from June 8 to 12 among a random national sample of 1,000 adults, including users of both conventional and cellular phones. The results from the full survey have a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.

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