Poll finds better economic ratings, but Biden approval flat

President Biden is still not seeing improved approval ratings despite a new survey showing Americans feel slightly better about the economy.

Thirty-five percent of Americans described the economy as good in the survey, conducted last month by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. This is slightly up from the 30 percent who said the same in December, and it is up from the 24 percent who labeled it as good in January 2023.

The majority of adults — 65 percent — view the economy as poor, which is down from the 69 percent who described it as poor in December.

There are also significant partisan differences in how the economy is viewed, with 58 percent of Democrats and 15 percent of Republicans saying the economy was good. These numbers are also up from December, when 53 percent of Democrats said it was good compared to just 8 percent of Republicans.

While the economic indicators are up, Biden’s approval rating remains below 40 percent, per the survey. Around 38 percent of respondents said they approved of Biden’s overall performance, which is where his approval rating has been hovering over the past year.

About 35 percent of respondents approved of how the president was handling the economy, which the poll noted is about the same as the previous months.

Roughly 70 percent of Democrats approved of his overall job performance, while just 7 percent of Republicans said the same. On the economy, 65 percent of Democrats and 7 percent of Republicans approved of how he was handling it.

The poll found that younger Democrats were more likely to disapprove of Biden’s overall job performance and his handling of the economy. Fifty-three percent of Democrats ages 18 to 39 approved of his overall job performance, while 78 percent of Democrats who are 40 and older approved.

Younger Democrats were also more likely to disapprove of Biden's handle on the economy, with 44 percent of 18-39-year-olds saying they approved of his policies. Just more than 75 percent of those 40 and older said the same.

The poll was conducted from Jan. 25-29 among 1,152 adults and has a margin of error of 4 percentage points.