A new poll puts Donald Trump in second place among 21st-century US presidents, just behind Barack Obama. He came in ahead of both George W Bush and Joe Biden.
The poll came from Quantus Insights and surveyed 1,000 registered voters between June 30 and July 2. Obama got 47 percent, Trump had 37, Bush landed at 12, and Biden only got 4 percent.
Obama led among women, Black voters, college grads, and people under 30. In fact, 85 percent of Democrats said he was their favorite president of the century.
The poll was run by a group connected with a right-leaning site and has gotten praise for its accuracy in past swing state results. Newsweek also mentioned they made a top 20 list last year for valuable polling firms.
Trump’s support came mostly from Republicans and older rural voters. Among Republicans, 75 percent picked him, while only 8 percent chose Obama.
Seniors also leaned toward Trump, with 50 percent saying he was their pick compared to 36 percent for Obama. Among white voters, the numbers were close, with Trump at 43 percent and Obama at 41.
Men were split too, with Trump just ahead at 43 percent versus Obama’s 40. But women leaned heavily toward Obama.
Trump got solid support from non-college voters at 39 percent and was only 11 points behind Obama with independents, 33 to 44. That gap might not seem huge for a group that tends to swing.
Even with his high ranking in the historical poll, Trump’s current approval numbers are lower. The same group gave him a net approval rating of -2.
That might have to do with recent moves like the Liberation Day tariffs, military action in Los Angeles, and airstrikes in Iran. Those were major decisions that got a lot of criticism.
Other polls like CNN/SSRS and Reuters/Ipsos said Americans were uneasy after the Iran strikes. His approval rating in June stayed mostly steady at 41 percent, but his foreign policy numbers dropped to 35.
The New York Times pointed out that drops like that aren’t unheard of. Still, it’s not great timing for someone trying to keep momentum.
Jason Corley told the news that “Voters distinguish between past leadership identity and current performance judgments.”
He said: “Favorability is rooted in identity politics, grievance alignment, and movement loyalty,” but approval ratings respond more to whatever is happening now.
Corley also said: “This is not mere partisanship. It reflects a deeper loss of faith in national direction, shared across ideological lines.” He added that the biggest pessimism is showing up among rural Americans and older voters, who are still the core of Trump’s base.
