Donald Trump’s approval rating lowest in history at one month mark

Donald Trump’s approval rating a month into his presidency is at a historical low compared to past presidents, according to a new poll.

The US President currently has a 40 per cent job approval rating, the measure used to gauge a leader’s public popularity during their time in office.

While most new US leaders enjoy a spike in popularity at the beginning of their term, Mr Trump’s rating is 21 points lower than the average 61 per cent, according to the highly respected polling agency, Gallup.

He is also 11 points lower than any other US leader in history for readings taken in mid-February. The poll surveyed 1,527 US citizens.

Bill Clinton had previously held the record low for a president at the end of his first month in office at 51 per cent, however Ronald Reagan was the only other president with approval below 60 per cent at this stage of his presidency.

Mr Trump’s initial approval rating upon taking office was also a record low at 45 per cent. He was the first president to take office with less than majority approval.

However, he is not the first leader to see a decline in his ratings during his first month in the White House.

Bill Clinton and Barack Obama’s approval also decreased significantly during their first month in office, with Mr Clinton’s seven-point decrease representing the biggest decline on Gallup record.

John F Kennedy and Jimmy Carter both achieved solid approval ratings above 70 per cent at a similar stage in their presidencies.

Mr Trump’s plummeting ratings followed a tumultuous first month for his administration.

Many of the former real-estate mogul’s first actions as 45th President were poorly received, including his controversial executive orders on immigration that temporarily barred visitors from seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the US.

The orders were subsequently overturned by the courts leading Mr Trump to launch a series of appeals, which were also defeated.

His national security adviser Michael Flynn was forced to resign after it was revealed he attempted to cover up conversations he had with the Russian ambassador, made before he took office, leading to questions over Mr Trump’s ties to the Kremlin.

The Republican leader’s approval ratings are also low in part due to very few Democrats - eight per cent - believing he is doing a good job.

Democrat support of the President is also at a record low with the previous lowest opposition rating being 24 per cent approval of Mr Clinton among Republicans, and the average being 43 per cent from the opposition party in mid-February after taking office.

Mr Trump is still managing to hold on to Republican support. His approval rating is four points higher than the 83 per cent average for previous presidents one month into their presidency, despite his overall approval among Republicans falling three points since his inauguration.

If Mr Trump loses one more point from his job approval rating, he will join Mr Clinton as the second president in history to fall below 40 per cent approval during his first year in office.