“How would you rate the overall job President Barack Obama is doing?”

These are some of the results of The Harris Poll of 2,320 adults surveyed online between March 1 and 8, 2010 by Harris Interactive.

Looking at political party, while it may not be too surprising that almost nine in ten Republicans (88%) give the president negative ratings, 61% of Independents and 30% of Democrats feel the same. In fact, among Democrats, only one in five (19%) would rate the job President Obama is doing as excellent.

There are also differences among generations. Baby Boomers (those aged 46-64) are President Obama’s “strongest” supporters as 54% give the president negative ratings followed by 57% of Echo Boomers (those aged 18-33). On the other hand, over two thirds (68%) of Matures (those aged 65 and older) give the president negative ratings as do 63% of Gen Xers (those aged 34-45).

Low point for Congress

Just one in ten Americans (10%) give Congress a positive rating for the overall job they are doing while 90% give them negative marks, with half (51%) saying they are doing a poor job – the lowest rating. This is down from the 16% in January who gave them positive ratings and is the lowest they have been for this Congress.

Democrats may be in control of Congress, but they cannot blame Republicans for this low number. While just 5% of Republicans and 8% of Independents give Congress positive marks, less than one in five Democrats (17%) give Congress a positive rating.

Another number that has moved down is the direction Americans think things in the country are going. After staying at 37% since November, this month the number of U.S. adults who believe things in the country are going in the right direction has dropped to 33% while 67% say things have pretty seriously gotten off on the wrong track.

So What?

In eight months, voters will head to the polls in congressional elections. Besides the low job ratings they currently have, members of Congress also have one other concern. Only 4% of Matures currently give them positive ratings and three-quarters of them (73%) give them a poor rating. These are the people who are most likely to come out in November to vote. If this negativity holds, incumbents from both parties may find themselves in trouble.

Methodology

This Harris Poll was conducted online within the United States March 1 to 8, 2010 among 2,320 adults (aged 18 and over). Figures for age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, region and household income were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents’ propensity to be online.

All sample surveys and polls, whether or not they use probability sampling, are subject to multiple sources of error which are most often not possible to quantify or estimate, including sampling error, coverage error, error associated with nonresponse, error associated with question wording and response options, and post-survey weighting and adjustments. Therefore, Harris Interactive avoids the words “margin of error” as they are misleading. All that can be calculated are different possible sampling errors with different probabilities for pure, unweighted, random samples with 100% response rates. These are only theoretical because no published polls come close to this ideal.

Respondents for this survey were selected from among those who have agreed to participate in Harris Interactive surveys. The data have been weighted to reflect the composition of the adult population. Because the sample is based on those who agreed to participate in the Harris Interactive panel, no estimates of theoretical sampling error can be calculated.

These statements conform to the principles of disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls.

The results of this Harris Poll may not be used in advertising, marketing or promotion without the prior written permission of Harris Interactive.

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Q1205, 1215, 1220

The Harris Poll^® #37, March 15, 2010
By Regina A. Corso, Director, The Harris Poll, Harris Interactive

About Harris Interactive

Harris Interactive is one of the world’s leading custom market research firms, leveraging research, technology, and business acumen to transform relevant insight into actionable foresight. Known widely for the Harris Poll and for pioneering innovative research methodologies, Harris offers expertise in a wide range of industries including healthcare, technology, public affairs, energy, telecommunications, financial services, insurance, media, retail, restaurant, and consumer package goods. Serving clients in over 215 countries and territories through our North American, European, and Asian offices and a network of independent market research firms, Harris specializes in delivering research solutions that help us – and our clients – stay ahead of what’s next. For more information, please visit www.harrisinteractive.com.

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