Polls

Feedly - Trump’s overall approval rating slumps to 34%, according to new CNN poll, as midterms testing Republican power loom. Three-quarters of Americans believe Donald Trump is not paying enough attention to the country’s most important problems, and two-thirds think he places himself above the needs of the US, according to a new poll. The CNN survey, conducted by market research company SSRS, comes less than 100 days before November’s midterm elections in which the president’s Republican party is widely expected to lose control of one or both chambers of Congress. 

This new Quinnipiac poll is one of the worst yet for Trump: approval at 32 percent, and support for Iran policy (28), foreign policy (34), handling of economy (34), and handling of immigration (40) at abysmal lows. He’s 17 points underwater on immigration. Also—57 percent of Democrats say they’re more motivated to vote than usual; corresponding number for Republicans, 39 percent.

The Hill - It’s no secret that both political parties are unpopular.  This is particularly true of Gen Z, which polls suggest feels like it is set to inherit a political system riddled with partisan hostility and congressional gridlock.

A report from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University found that 62 percent of adults aged 18-29 said that the design and structure of our nation’s government needs significant changes, no matter which party is elected. Additionally, 58 percent said the party they identify with needs to dramatically change.

The study’s conclusions pointed out that older generations have longer histories with politics (duh) and have lived through a mix of both steady and unstable leadership. They have been able to ground themselves in the political framework produced by prominent leaders, like former Presidents Reagan and Obama, the study cites. 

Gen Z, in contrast, grew up or continues to grow up through volatility with fewer frames of political reference, which makes it harder to feel anchored by today’s politicians and system overall.

At the same time, Gen Z is less likely to describe the opposing political party as “evil” or “less than human.” While 39 percent of Gen Z respondents said the opposing political party is “evil” or “less than human,” 44 percent of millennials aged 30-44 and 61 percent of baby boomers who are 65 years or older characterized their opposing political party negatively. 

But if Gen Z is less likely to see their political opponents as “evil,” they see more justification for political violence. Forty percent of Gen Zers said political violence is justified to some degree, compared with 30 percent of millennials and 11 percent of boomers.