Americans are closely split on President Trump’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, according to a Hill/HarrisX tracking poll released on Tuesday.
The poll of 933 registered voters shows approval of Trump’s efforts to combat the outbreak ticking downward to 49 percent last week, a marginal 1-point decline from the 50 percent approval he received in the last week of March.
Meanwhile, a slight majority — 51 percent — said they disapprove of the president’s handling of the coronavirus outbreak. That’s still well within the survey’s 3.21-percentage-point margin of error.
Approval of Trump’s handling of the pandemic increased among Republicans, rising from 76 percent in the last week of March to 82 percent last week, the poll shows.
But among Democrats and independents, the president’s efforts are viewed less favorably. Only 26 percent of Democrats said they approve of Trump’s handling of the outbreak, down from 29 percent the week before. Meanwhile, 44 percent of independents said they approve of the job he’s doing, a decrease of 4 points from the last week of March.
The poll was conducted just days after Trump signed into law a massive $2.2 trillion relief bill intended to mitigate the economic fallout wrought by the coronavirus pandemic. That measure includes direct payments to U.S. adults, expands unemployment coverage and provides assistance to businesses impacted by the crisis.
The slight decline in approval of his efforts to lead the country through the pandemic coincides with similar decreases in approval of his efforts to stimulate jobs, which ticked down 1 point from 61 percent at the end of March, and his handling of immigration, which dropped from 52 percent to 49 percent.
Still, Trump remains on solid ground with voters when it comes to his handling of the economy. Fifty-eight percent of those surveyed said they approve of the job he’s done managing the economy, which was unchanged from the week before.
The Hill-HarrisX poll was conducted online among 933 registered voters from April 2-3. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.21 percentage points.
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