Abbott, Trump approval ratings: Poll shows economy, THC reduce favorability among Texans
TEXAS - A recent poll conducted by a Texas organization found that issues like the economy and a close brush with a ban on THC products have caused a drop in voters’ approval of top leaders.
President Donald Trump’s and Gov. Greg Abbott’s approval ratings have both dropped into the net negatives since April, the Texas Politics Project found.
Gov. Greg Abbott Approval Ratings
Greg Abbott, governor of Texas, during a news conference following a roundtable discussion in Dallas, Texas, US, on Thursday, Aug. 11, 2022. Abbott held an education roundtable highlighting the important role parents have in the education of their ch
By the numbers:
Texas voters approving of Abbott’s job have lessened since April, when the governor sat at 44% approval and 43% disapproval. He has now fallen to 41% approval and 44% disapproval, the poll found.
A major contributor to Abbott’s popularity rating appears to have been the controversial Senate Bill 3, the near-total ban on THC consumables, which Abbott vetoed on Sunday in favor of a special legislative session in July to enact regulations on the substance.
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The poll found that 53% of Texas voters opposed the ban, while only 31% supported it. The bipartisan disapproval included 46% of Republican critics and 39% Republican advocates, compared to a 68% opposition by Democrats.
The poll was conducted shortly after the end of Texas’ legislative session, but before Abbott’s veto. The bill was passed to the governor’s desk by the House and Senate, where it sat until the final day allotted for him to act on the proposal. He had remained silent on his decision before killing the bill.
Dig deeper:
Other major bills that caught the public eye were either signed or verbally approved of by Abbott prior to polling results.
Each of the following garnered huge numbers of critics and advocates, though their individual impacts on the TxPP poll are unknown.
- Senate Bill 2: Allocates $1 billion for private school vouchers, and was Abbott’s top priority this session.
- House Bill 2: Sets aside $8 billion of the state budget to fund public schools.
- Senate Bill 10: Mandates a copy of the Christian Ten Commandments be displayed in every public classroom in the state. A lawsuit has already been filed challenging the decision.
- Senate Bill 4, Senate Bill 23, and House Bill 9: Come together as a $10 billion property tax relief package.
- Senate Bill 9, Senate Bill 40, House Bill 75, and SJR 5: A package transforming Texas’ bail system, signed on what Abbott described as a "day of reckoning."
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Abortion, religion in schools and THC - Hundreds of new Texas laws explained
Governor Greg Abbott signed over 600 bills into law this session, enacting significant legislative changes across education (including religion and cell phone use in schools), abortion access, foreign land ownership, border security, and various crime and law enforcement measures, with one notable bill regarding a THC ban still awaiting his decision.
Over 1,200 bills made their way to Abbott’s desk this session. To see his releases on the numerous laws he approved, click here and here.
FOX reporting on the bills vetoed by Abbott this session can be read here.
President Donald Trump Texas Approval Ratings
Pres. Trump on tariffs, raising taxes on the rich
President Donald Trump answers questions from reporters about tariffs and the potential for raising taxes on the wealthy.
For the first time in his second administration, Trump’s approval among Texans has gone negative, with a current standing of 44% approval and 51% disapproval. Less than six months into his second term, the numbers tie his highest negative disapproval rating ever recorded by the organization.
Of contentious elements of the Trump administration, those with the most negative views among Texans were his performance on the economy (51% disapprove; 39% approve), and inflation and prices (52% disapprove; 34% approve).
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The president has attempted to force change at some of the nation’s top universities that he believes are linked to liberalism and antisemitism.
His critics were found to be majority Democrat. Republicans in the state approve of Trump overall at 87%, down from 89% in April and 92% in February. The poll found that Democrats showed approval ratings no higher than 10% for any of the 16 policy areas in their testing.
The polling was completed prior to Trump's involvement in the conflict between Israel and Iran.
The TxPP has conducted seven polls on Trump’s performance since he began his first term as president. In the five conducted during that term, more Texans gave approval than disapproval for his handling of the economy in each poll. In the two conducted this term, more Texans have disapproved than approved both times.
Polling Methodology
The poll was conducted by interviewing 1,331 registered voters in Texas between June 6-16, who were then narrowed down to a final dataset of 1,200.
This was done by using different subsets of a politically representative "modelled frame" of US adults, the organization said.
To read the full methodology report, click here. To read the full poll, click here.
The Source: Information in this report came from the Texas Politics Project and previous FOX reporting.