President Joe Biden's public approval rating has seen a slight increase this month, reaching 42%, marking its highest point since March. This uptick in support comes despite
House Republicans initiating a formal impeachment inquiry against him, as revealed by a Reuters/Ipsos poll.
The three-day poll concluded on Sunday and indicates a marginal rise in Biden's popularity compared to the previous month when 40% of respondents approved of his performance since taking office in January 2021.
It's worth noting that Biden's approval ratings tend to be heavily influenced by partisan lines. Approximately 80% of self-identified Democrats expressed approval of Biden, showing a slight increase from August. In contrast, 91% of Republicans disapproved of his performance.
Biden's public approval rating has remained below the 50% mark since August 2021. Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy recently called for an impeachment inquiry into Biden, further intensifying the partisan divide in the lead-up to the 2024 presidential election.
Republicans have alleged that Biden profited from his son Hunter Biden's foreign business ventures during his tenure as vice president from 2009 to 2017, though substantial evidence to support these claims has not been presented. The White House has maintained that there is no basis for an investigation.
It's worth noting that two of the four U.S. presidents who preceded Biden—Bill Clinton and Donald Trump—were impeached by the House of Representatives but subsequently acquitted by the Senate. Following the Republican-led impeachment probe into Clinton, the party lost House seats in the 1998 midterm elections. In the case of the two Democrat-led impeachment inquiries against Trump, the Republican president lost his reelection bid to Biden in 2020.
The economy continues to be the top concern for Americans, with 23% of respondents identifying it as "the most important problem facing the U.S. today." During Biden's term, the U.S. has experienced historically high inflation rates, prompting central bankers to increase interest rates to control rising prices. Additionally, 13% of respondents cited "crime or corruption" as the most significant issue.
The Reuters/Ipsos poll collected responses online from 1,029 adults, using a nationally representative sample. Photo by Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America, Wikimedia commons.