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President Joe Biden’s job approval remains stuck in the low 40s at the same time as there’s increasing optimism about the midterm environment for Democrats, according to the most recent national NBC News poll.
So what’s going on here?
Answer: Biden is trailing Democratic performance on the generic ballot, especially among key pillars of the Democratic coalition.
Overall, 42% of registered voters approve of Biden’s job, versus 55% who disapprove (a 13-point gap). But on the ballot, 45% prefer Democrats to control Congress, while 47% want Republicans in charge (a 2-point GOP lead).
And just look at the numbers among these voting blocs: Biden’s job rating stands at 68% approve, 28% disapprove with Black voters, 47%-49% with women, 43%-51% with independents, 40%-54% with Latinos and 36%-58% with voters ages 18-34.
But compare that with congressional preference among these same groups: Black voters prefer Democrats to control Congress by a 74%-15% margin; women by 52%-41%; Latinos by 53%-39%; those 18-34 by 52%-38%; and independents by 40%-39%.
The NBC News poll was conducted Aug. 12-16 of 1,000 registered voters, and it has an overall margin of error of plus-minus 3.1 percentage points.
