Gallup: GOP's Approval Rating Lowest in 21 Years

The Republican Party's approval rating has fallen to its lowest level in 21 years, says a new Gallup survey released on Wednesday.

The Gallup poll of 1,028 adults, conducted Oct. 3-6, found that Republicans were viewed favorably by only 28 percent of those who responded, down from 38 percent last month.

Gallup said it first started asking the question in 1992.

But the Democratic Party's favorable rating also took a hit: 4 percentage points in the latest survey, down to 43 percent from last month's 47 percent.

The survey was taken two days after the federal government's partial shutdown began  as a result of House Republicans, Senate Democrats and President Barack Obama failing to reach an agreement to temporarily fund the government once the fiscal year ended Sept. 30.

The impasse occurred over Obamacare. Earlier House resolutions sought to completely defund the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, but the last resolution sought to delay Obamcare's mandate for individual Americans.

That mandate took effect on Oct. 1.

The Gallup poll also found that more than six in 10 Americans, or 62 percent, had a negative view of Republicans — also a record high.

As for Democrats, nearly half of those surveyed, or 49 percent, said they had unfavorable views of the party.

Meanwhile, nearly one in four Americans viewed both parties unfavorably, Gallup found.