Gallup: Boehner’s ratings slip

House Speaker John Boehner’s (R-Ohio) ratings have taken a hit since the new GOP majority in the House went to work in January. 

According to a new USA Today/Gallup poll, Americans are now split on Boehner. Thirty-four percent hold a favorable view of the Speaker, while another 34 percent view him unfavorably. That’s down from Boehner’s high of 42 percent favorable, measured in mid-January.

{mosads}Gallup found the Speaker’s favorables have slipped across the board — down 9 points among Republicans, 10 points among independents and 5 points among Democrats.

Early this year, 65 percent of Republicans held a favorable view of Boehner. That number is now down to 56 percent. Among independent voters, just 29 percent hold a favorable view, compared to 39 percent in January.  

The decline in Boehner’s numbers comes in the wake of a budget battle that brought the nation to the brink of a government shutdown and as congressional approval stands at just 17 percent overall. 

Gallup’s Jeffrey Jones notes that the downward trend in Boehner’s ratings is similar to what Gallup measured for Democrat Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) in her first year as House Speaker in 2007. Within just two months of assuming the Speakership, Pelosi’s favorables had declined significantly.  

The poll surveyed 1,013 adults and has a margin of error of 4 percentage points.