Eighty percent of Republicans, meanwhile, approve of President Donald Trump's job performance. | Getty Poll: 46 percent of Americans disapprove of Trump's job performance

A plurality of Americans, 46 percent, disapprove of President Donald Trump’s job performance six weeks after his inauguration, while 43 percent approve of it, according to a new poll.

The Monmouth University survey, its first measuring Trump’s job approval rating, found that the president’s standing among Republicans, though, remains strong: 80 percent approve of his job performance.


By contrast, in numbers comparable to recent surveys conducted by other pollsters, a large majority of Democrats, 82 percent, said they disapprove of Trump. Independents are right down the middle: 43 percent approve of Trump’s job performance, and the same proportion disapproves.

The poll also found that the new president’s standing is considerably better in the counties he won by double digits in November and considerably worse in those he lost by that amount. Among counties he won by 10 points or more, Trump’s approval rating sits at 55 percent approve and 33 percent disapprove. Among those he lost by 10 points or more, he’s at just 33 percent approval and 57 percent disapproval.

In what Monmouth dubbed “swing counties” — those where the margin between Trump and Hillary Clinton was less than 10 percent — Trump is back under water. Forty-one percent of respondents in those counties said they approve of Trump’s job performance, while 46 disapprove.

The poll, which Monmouth conducted from March 2 to 5, had a sample size of 801 adults and a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percent.

The survey also touched on several policy issues, including Trump’s original temporary ban on immigration and travel from seven predominantly Muslim countries. Forty-nine percent of those surveyed by Monmouth said the ban was a bad idea, while 39 percent described it as a good idea.

Trump issued a replacement travel ban on Monday, weeks after his first executive order was halted in the courts. But of Americans surveyed by Monmouth, before Trump unveiled the new ban, 50 percent said Trump should “move on to other issues” rather than replace the old one (38 percent indicated that they thought Trump should come up with a new ban).

On questions about Trump and Russia, Americans were split on whether the president’s relationship with the country is a cause for concern. Forty-nine percent said they are not concerned that Trump may be too friendly with Russia, while 37 percent described themselves as very concerned about it and 11 percent as a little concerned.

Asked about the president’s generally well-received address to a joint session of Congress last week, a majority of voters, 63 percent, said the speech did not change their confidence in Trump. But among those who said the speech did change their opinion, more respondents said the president’s performance made them feel better about him: 21 percent said they feel more confident in Trump because of the address, while 4 percent said they feel less confident.