Most Republicans are "satisfied with the way things are going in the U.S.," according to a new Gallup poll, while Democrats are increasingly dissatisfied.
- Republicans satisfied: 55 percent
- Democrats satisfied: 13 percent
Last month, before President Donald Trump’s inauguration, Gallup asked voters the same question:
- Republicans satisfied: 22 percent
- Democrats satisfied: 27 percent
These results mirror polls taken in 2009, 2001 and 1993, all years when the party that controlled the White House switched, though the jump in Republican satisfaction "is larger than any change in Gallup's trend," writes Gallup's Jeffrey M. Jones and Andrew Dugan.
"The substantial change could be attributable to Trump's unexpected victory, placing the GOP in full control of the executive and legislative branches for the first time since 2006. This allows the GOP to pursue its policy agenda, which was largely thwarted during the Obama administration."
Overall, just under a third of Americans are satisfied with the way things are going, a small increase from last month:
- Overall satisfaction in February: 30 percent
- Overall satisfaction in January: 26 percent
- Overall satisfaction average since 2007: 24 percent
"While Trump's inauguration only modestly affected satisfaction levels in the country as a whole, Republicans' and Democrats' satisfaction have changed dramatically," Gallup concludes. "A shift in the relative satisfaction of party groups is consistent with historical patterns, but the degree to which Republicans' satisfaction surged after Trump took office is not."
"Still, satisfaction remains below average from a historical perspective, as it has for the last decade. Given Democrats' overwhelming disapproval of Trump, it is likely that satisfaction will remain at the lower levels in the near future."
The Gallup poll was conducted by phone, from Feb. 1-5, with a sample size of 1,035 American adults, with a margin of error of +/- 4 percentage points.