May 22, 2023
The country continues to hold negative views of the direction of the country and the condition of the economy. Only 21% of adults believe the country is headed in the right direction. This includes 36% of Democrats and 7% of Republicans. Twenty-four percent of the public says the economy is in good shape, while 76% think it is in poor condition.
Views of the national economy remain pessimistic, with 24% of adults rating the national economy as good. This is down from April, when 30% called the national economy good. Democrats are more likely to say the national economy is good compared to Republicans. And adults age 60 and older are more likely to say the national economy is good compared to younger adults (34% vs. 19%). Furthermore, 32% of those with a college degree describe the national economy as good compared to 20% of those without a college degree.
Confidence in banks and financial institutions also remains low, with 11% of adults expressing a great deal of confidence. In September 2020, 22% had a great deal of confidence in financial institutions.
Forty percent of the public approve of how Joe Biden is handling his job as president, just about the same as his approval rating in April. His support among Democrats remains strong.
Views of how Biden is handling the national economy, gun policy, and immigration are more negative. Only a third approve of Biden’s handling of these issues. The public is slightly more positive when it comes to how the president is handling student loans.
The president’s approval overall and his approval on specific issues remain highly partisan.
Adults age 60 and older and those with a college degree are more likely to approve of Biden’s handling of the economy and gun policy compared to younger or less educated individuals .
The nationwide poll was conducted May 11-15, 2023 using the AmeriSpeak® Panel, the probability-based panel of NORC at the University of Chicago. Online and telephone interviews using landlines and cell phones were conducted with 1,680 adults. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3.4 percentage points.
- Citation: AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. (May 2023). “Negative views of the direction of the country and the national economy persist.” https://apnorc.org/negative-views-of-the-direction-of-the-country-and-the-national-economy-persist/
