President Trump has had a crazy year.
And with the government shutdown dominating the news in early 2019, the President is starting to look towards his re-election bid in 2020.
But this one poll could mean the end for Trump.
President Trump stunned the country and the world when he defied all the polls and beat Hillary Clinton in 2016.
But the latest Rasmussen poll of President Trump’s approval ratings was just released this week and the results aren’t pretty for the President.
The poll, released on January 14th, pins Trump’s approval rating at the lowest levels in a year.
This could spell bad news for Trump as the shutdown continues to drag on and Democrats gear up to challenge one another for the Presidential nomination.
Breaking down the results, some interesting patterns emerge.
President Trump currently has a 43% approval rating, according to Rasmussen.
55% of Americans disapprove of the job he is doing as President.
Breaking the numbers down further, the split between pro-Trump and anti-Trump forces becomes starker.
33% of respondents strongly approve of Trump performance, while 45% strongly disapprove.
This gives President Trump an approval rating index of -12.
The approval index tracks only those who have strong feelings about the President one way or another, which can signal how much political energy there is among America’s activists in both parties.
His overall approval rating, however, is sending an even more dire message.
The last time President Trump had a 43% approval rating in a Rasmussen poll was the final week of January 2018.
But it’s not all bad news for the President.
With roughly two years until the 2020 elections, there’s plenty of time for Trump to improve his numbers.
And with the Democrats falling over themselves to run against Trump, it’s not unthinkable for the President to face off against another terrible and unpopular candidate similar to Hillary Clinton.
That individual will have baggage of their own and a host of openings and weaknesses for Trump to exploit.
Additionally, President Trump’s approval rating is very close to where President Obama’s stood at this point during his first term.
What’s more, President Trump’s approval index was far worse in the summer of 2017.
And once the Democratic field for the nomination is settled, pollsters will begin to look at each of the candidates vying to run against Trump.
It’s very likely many of the Democrat candidates will have polling numbers that match or are worse than President Trump’s.
Nevertheless, Rasmussen’s current polling suggests the President still has a lot of work to do before the 2020 election cycle formally begins.
We will keep you up to date with any new developments in this ongoing story.
