President Trump’s approval on the economy is down 15 points since March, according to a CBS News/YouGov survey released Monday.
The poll, conducted late last week, shows 36 percent of Americans approve of Trump’s handling of the economy, down from 51 percent in a poll released in early March.
The drop in economic approval is more acute than the president’s overall decline. Today, 40 percent of Americans approve of Trump’s performance in office, down 11 points from the March survey.
The slump in Trump’s economic approval is driven by a shift among independent voters.
Today, more than three-quarters of independents — 76 percent — disapprove of Trump’s handling of the economy, while 24 percent approve.
In March, 54 percent of independent respondents disapproved of Trump’s economic job performance while 46 percent approved.
The shift in his economic approval rating among independent voters mirrors the shift in his overall numbers.
Trump’s general job approval rating among independents is 44 points underwater currently — with 72 percent disapproving and 28 percent approving. In the March poll, his job approval rating among independents was just 6 points underwater, with 53 percent disapproving and 47 percent approving.
Democrats have similarly seen a drop in approval for the president, with only 3 percent approving of his handling of the economy and 4 percent approving of his overall job performance. In the March poll, 16 percent of Democrats approved of Trump’s approach to the economy, while 13 percent approved of his overall handling of the presidency.
A less dramatic decline among Republicans. On the economy, 81 percent approve today, down from 88 percent in the March poll. Overall, Trump’s approval remains effectively unchanged among his party, with 89 percent approving today, and 90 percent approving in the March poll.
The survey comes as the Trump administration has renewed its focus on economic issues, in particular after Democrats swept in elections across the country earlier this month, largely prioritizing a message of affordability and cost of living.
The survey included 1,489 adults and was conducted Nov. 19-21. The margin of error is 2.4 percentage points.
