GOP approval rating begins to rebound

The Republican Party’s approval rating is improving but has yet to fully recover from the government shutdown, according to a Gallup poll released Wednesday.

The GOP’s approval rating is at 32 percent, up from 28 percent in October, according to Gallup. Republicans had an approval rating of 38 percent before the shutdown began.

{mosads}Despite the uptick, the GOP remains at its lowest poll numbers since the effort to impeach Bill Clinton in 1999, when the party’s approval rating fell to 31 percent.

Democrats are faring better despite the botched rollout of ObamaCare. Forty-two percent told Gallup they view Democrats favorably, down just one point from October.

While stronger than the Republicans’, the number still ties a record low Democrats hit in 2010 prior to a major Republican victory in that year’s midterm elections. The party’s disapproval has also increased, with 53 percent viewing the party unfavorably compared to 49 percent two months ago.

Both parties are down measurably from last June, when Republicans had 39 percent approval and Democrats had 46 percent.

The Democrats’ significant advantage in favorability is rooted in stronger performance with centrists, who gave them 47 percent approval compared to just 27 percent for Republicans. They also performed better with their ideological base; 71 percent of self-identified liberals have a favorable view of the party, while in comparison just 47 percent of self-identified conservatives view Republicans in the same way.

The poll of 1,031 adults was conducted from Dec. 5-8 and has a margin of error of 4 percentage points.