President Trump has hit a net positive approval rating for the first time in a Washington Post-ABC News poll, amid a general rise in approval for the president during the Wuhan coronavirus pandemic.
Trump’s overall approval rating stands at 48 percent to a 46 percent disapproval, according to the poll. The same survey conducted in February recorded 43 percent approval and 53 percent disapproval.
Republican respondents approved of Trump’s performance by 86 percent, Independents by 49 percent, and Democrats by 17 percent. The president’s net positive approval rating may be due to heightened support among Democrats, just 4 percent of whom approved of Trump in the same survey in February.
Trump’s handling of the coronavirus outbreak was also viewed positively, with 51 percent of respondents approving to 45 percent disapproving. However, respondents criticized Trump’s early response to the pandemic, with 58 percent saying the president was too slow to take action against the coronavirus and 38 percent saying he acted “with the right amount of speed.”
President Trump’s job approval is up in several other polls as well, with an average 47 percent approval to 49 percent disapproval according to RealClearPolitics.
The Trump administration initially struggled to cope with the fallout from the coronavirus outbreak in the U.S. Stocks nosedived in mid-March as various states, including New York, announced closures of various non-essential businesses, while Trump faced criticism from congressional Republicans and White House officials for downplaying the outbreak.
Since then, Trump has thrown his weight behind a massive $2 trillion economic aid package making its way through Congress. Stocks have surged this week in expectation of economic aid.