While a May 2021 survey conducted by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and the University of Georgia found Biden had an approval rating of about 51 percent in the state, the latest AJC poll that was published on Wednesday found that number had dropped to around 34 percent.
Among respondents who identified as independents, that number fell from about 46 percent to just over 33 percent. Among Democrats, 74.4 percent said they either strongly or somewhat approve of the way that Biden is handling his job as president. That compares to 92.3 percent in the May survey.
Biden’s approval has never been high among Republicans in Georgia. The May survey found about 9 percent of GOP members in the state giving Biden a positive approval rating. The new poll shows fewer than 2 percent of Georgia Republicans approving of the president’s performance.
Biden won Georgia during the 2020 election, becoming the first Democratic presidential candidate that the state’s voters have supported in nearly 30 years.
The poll released this week was conducted between January 13 and January 24, and surveyed 872 registered state voters, according to the University of Georgia.
In recent months, Biden’s approval rating has fallen across the U.S.
During his first year in office, Biden averaged an approval rating of 48.9 percent, according to figures from Gallup, giving him the second-lowest approval rating for a president during his first year in office. Trump maintains the record for lowest approval rating in year one.
When asked about his low approval ratings earlier this month, Biden said: “I don’t believe the polls.”
He argued that voters support his policy priorities.
“The American people overwhelmingly agree with me on prescription drugs,” the president said.
“They overwhelmingly agree with me on the cost of education. They overwhelmingly agree with me on early education. They overwhelming—I can go on to list, on child care,” he added.
Recent polling has also found Republicans with an advantage heading into the 2022 midterm elections.
In addition to asking Georgia voters about Biden, the new AJC poll also showed Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams behind the two leading Republican contenders for the governor’s office in Georgia.
Incumbent Republican Governor Brian Kemp leads Abrams by more than 7 points, the poll found, while Kemp’s Republican challenger David Perdue has a nearly 4-point lead over Abrams.
Newsweek reached out to the White House for comment on the latest Georgia poll but did not immediately receive a response before publication on Thursday evening.
