Trump job approval slips 6 points in past month: poll

President Trump’s job approval rating has slipped 6 points in the past month and now sits at 43 percent as his administration handles the fallout from the outbreak of the novel coronavirus, according to a new Gallup survey.

The survey, released on Thursday, found that 43 percent of American adults approve of the way Trump is handling his job as president, while 54 percent say they disapprove. The findings represent a significant drop from a March 24 Gallup poll that found Trump’s approval rating had climbed to 49 percent, which matched a personal best for his presidency. 

Trump’s approval rating also sat at 49 percent in late January and early February, around the time of the Senate impeachment trial that concluded with his acquittal. 

The president’s approval rating experienced another boost in mid-March as his administration began implementing social distancing guidelines to help slow the spread of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. 

The latest Gallup survey found that his approval declined among Democrats and independents. Just 7 percent of Democrats approve of Trump’s job performance, a 6-point decrease from mid-March. Trump’s approval among independents also declined by 4 points and now stands at 39 percent. 

Meanwhile, 93 percent of Republicans approve of Trump’s handling of the presidency. 

The novel coronavirus, which first appeared in China in December, has infected more than 640,000 people in the U.S. and caused roughly 31,500 deaths, according to a Johns Hopkins University database. 

Trump has faced scrutiny for his early attempts to downplay the severity of the disease, and several governors and other state officials have taken aim at his administration over medical equipment shortages. 

Trump, meanwhile, has accused the World Health Organization (WHO) and China of not disclosing the true nature of the disease early enough. He announced earlier this week that he would suspend funding to the WHO over its role in “severely mismanaging and covering up the spread of the coronavirus.”

The Gallup survey was conducted from April 1 to April 14 among a population of 1,017 American adults. It has a margin of error of 4 percentage points.