MADISON, Wis. (AP) - More people in Wisconsin disapprove than approve of the job Donald Trump has done as president, according to a statewide poll released Wednesday.
Only 41 percent of respondents approved of Trump’s job performance since taking office in January, while 47 percent disapproved, the latest Marquette University Law School poll showed.
Trump joins Gov. Scott Walker as the only politicians asked about in the poll who are underwater, with more respondents disapproving of their job performance than approving. House Speaker Paul Ryan, Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson and Democratic U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin all had better numbers.
The poll showed a stark partisan split over Trump’s job performance, with 86 percent of Republicans approving of it and 89 percent of Democrats disapproving.
Trump carried Wisconsin in the November election, becoming the first Republican presidential candidate to win the state since Ronald Reagan in 1984. The Marquette poll was the first survey the university has done since Trump took office.
Other poll findings showed deep skepticism over the proposed changes to the Affordable Care Act that are being championed by Ryan and that Trump has been lobbying Republicans to support.
The poll found that 54 percent favored keeping and making improvements to the current law, which was passed in 2010. Six percent want to keep it as is, with no changes. Only 8 percent said the law should be repealed outright, while 28 percent said it should be replaced.
The Republican-controlled House could vote on the GOP health care bill as soon as Thursday.
There was no consensus over what to make about allegations that Russia interfered in the election to benefit Trump. Fifty percent said they were very or somewhat concerned about the possibility, while 48 percent they were not at all concerned.
Other poll findings:
- As he prepares for a likely run for a third term next year, Walker’s approval rating sits at 45 percent, with 48 percent disapproving. His approval rating was 42 percent in late October and 44 percent earlier that month. While it’s Walker’s best numbers since his re-election in 2014, it’s below where he was at this time before he won that race. In March 2013, Walker had 50 percent approval.
- Forty-nine percent said the state is headed in the right direction, while 47 percent said it is on the wrong track.
- Johnson’s approval rating was 39 percent, with 34 disapproving and 26 percent not knowing enough to judge. Baldwin’s was 40 percent in favor, 35 opposed and 24 unsure. Ryan had the best numbers of the three, with 45 percent approving of his job performance, 38 percent disapproving and 17 percent unsure.
- There is no consensus over how to pay for the state’s roads. Forty-four percent of respondents said money to pay for roads should be taken from other unspecified programs. Another 35 percent said taxes or fees should be increased. Walker opposes raises the gas tax or vehicle-related fees to pay for roads, while some Republicans are pushing for that to be considered. Only 3 percent favor more borrowing, which Walker has proposed.
- Forty-eight percent said they support cutting University of Wisconsin tuition by 5 percent, as Walker has proposed, while 45 percent said they’d rather use the money to increase need-based financial aid, as some Republican lawmakers want.
The poll surveyed 800 registered voters between March 13 and March 16 and had a margin of error of plus or minus 4.4 percentage points.
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