Trump
approval holding at 50 percent statewide
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Disapproval of Republican Tennessee Sen. Bob
Corker has risen to 41 percent among Tennessee voters, according to the latest
MTSU Poll, a 14-point climb since last spring and in the wake of his public
feud with President Donald Trump.
Disapproval of
Trump edged up, too, from 32 to 40 percent during the same period. But Trump’s
approval held steady at 50 percent, well above national approval rate of about
37 percent. Corker’s approval dropped from 52 percent in the spring to 45
percent now, putting his approval rate below Trump’s but in the same range,
given the poll’s 4-percentage-point error margin.
“Essentially,
Corker’s negatives have increased markedly, but he has ended up only a bit
behind Trump in terms of approval, and possibly on par with him,” said Dr. Ken
Blake, director of the poll at Middle Tennessee State University. “Meanwhile,
some undecideds have switched to disapproval of President Trump, but Trump’s
base is sticking with him and keeping his approval rate relatively high in the
state overall.”
Job approval
ratings for Corker and Trump were combined to get a sense of whom Tennessee
voters would favor if the two were pitted against each other. Among state
voters who express an opinion about both men, 35 percent approve of Trump and
disapprove of Corker. A statistically similar 32 percent approve of Corker and
disapprove of Trump. Twenty-one percent approve of both Corker and Trump, and
13 percent disapprove of both.
Other political leaders
As for approval
of other key political players, the poll also found that:
·
56 percent
approve of Gov. Bill Haslam, compared to 57 percent in the spring
·
48 percent
approve of the Tennessee Legislature, compared to 50 percent in the spring
·
45 percent
approve of Tennessee Republican Sen. Lamar Alexander, unchanged from the spring
·
13 percent
approve of the U.S. Congress, compared to 21 percent in the spring
Two-thirds at least somewhat aware Trump-Corker
conflict
The poll also
asked how much Tennessee voters had read or heard about the recent conflict
between Corker and Trump. Overall:
·
68 percent say
they have read or heard “some” or “a lot” about the conflict
·
31 percent say
they have read or heard “only a little” or “nothing at all until now” about the
conflict.
·
The rest say
they don’t know or refuse to respond.
Overall, among
Tennessee voters who say they have read or heard “some” or “a lot” about the
conflict:
·
40 percent disapprove
of Corker and approve of Trump
·
34 percent approve
of Corker and disapprove of Trump
·
15 percent approve
of both Corker and Trump
·
12 percent
disapprove of both.
Among Tennessee
voters who said they had read or heard “only a little” or “nothing” about the
conflict
·
37 percent approve
of both Corker and Trump
·
27 percent
approve of Corker and disapprove of Trump
·
22 percent
disapprove of Corker and approve of Trump
·
15 percent disapprove
of both Trump and Corker
The impact of party affiliation
Among
self-identified Democrats (23 percent of the sample) a large, 71 percent
majority of those who say they have read or heard “some” or “a lot” about the
conflict approve of Corker and disapprove of Trump. Even among Democrats who say
they have heard “only a little” or “nothing” about the conflict, a 53 percent
majority disapprove of Trump and approve of Corker.
Among
self-identified Republicans (35 percent or the sample), a 65 percent majority of
those who say they have read or heard “some” or “a lot” about the conflict disapprove
of Corker and approve of Trump. But among Republicans who say they have read or
heard “only a little” or “nothing” about the conflict, a 56 percent majority approve
of both Corker and Trump.
Finally, among
the largest group of respondents, who identify as independents or something
else (40 percent of the sample), a 40 percent plurality of those who say they
have read or heard “some” or a “a lot” about the conflict disapprove of Corker
and approve of Trump, followed by 36 percent who approve of Corker and
disapprove of Trump.
The largest
group of independents who say they have heard “only a little” or “nothing”
about the conflict disapprove of both Corker and Trump (30 percent), followed
by those who approve of Corker and disapprove of Trump (26 percent).
“It appears that
Trump has generally weathered the conflict better than Corker among
Tennesseans, with the exception of self-identified Democrats who strongly favor
Corker,” said Dr. Jason Reineke, associate director of the poll, “and perhaps
some independents who appear to be disengaged from the story and either
disapprove of both or approve of Corker and disapprove of Trump.”
The
scientifically valid poll of 600 registered Tennessee voters reached via
randomly selected cell and landline phone was conducted Oct. 16-23 and has an
error margin of plus-or-minus 4 percentage points.
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