A majority of Americans approves of how President-elect Joe Biden has handled the transition process since winning the November election, according to a pair of new polls released just before his inauguration.
Approximately 68 percent of Americans surveyed in a Gallup poll published early Tuesday said they approve of Biden’s handling of his presidential transition, while nearly four in 10 said his decisions on key Cabinet appointments have been “outstanding” or “above average.”
A CNN poll, meanwhile, found that 66 percent of respondents indicated that they approve of Biden’s handling of the transition process.
Gallup noted that the rating of Biden’s transition process is higher than the marks President Trump received in 2016 and those of former President Barack Obama’s in 2008.
That poll fell sharply along partisan lines, with 96 percent of Democrats polled saying they approve of Biden’s handling of the transition and less than 30 percent of Republicans saying the same. Independents gave the president-elect a 71 percent transition approval rating.
CNN’s poll also found 70 percent of Americans disapprove of Trump’s handling of the three months since the election, with a majority adding that they expect Biden to be able to achieve several of his key policy goals once he is sworn in.
The two new surveys come one day before Biden is set to be inaugurated Wednesday as Trump leaves office.
Biden has spent the last three months rolling out various Cabinet appointments, explaining his plan to fight the coronavirus pandemic and teasing his policy agenda during his first 100 days in office.
Since losing the November election, Trump has refused to officially concede and alleged the election was “rigged” against him. Trump has said he will not attend Biden’s inauguration on Wednesday.
A pair of new polls released in recent days show Trump with record low job approval ratings, with majorities of Americans saying they are displeased with his behavior since the election.
On Jan. 6, Trump spoke at a rally in Washington, D.C. and repeated unproven claims of a “stolen” election and urged his supporters to march on the Capitol as a joint session of Congress met to certify Biden’s Electoral College victory.
Trump supporters breached the Capitol later that day and multiple people died as a result of rioting that ensued, leading to his second impeachment.
Following the riots, An ABC News/Ipsos poll revealed most Americans feel Trump should be impeached and removed from office for his role in the riots.
The new Gallup poll was conducted Jan. 4 through 15, with a random sampling of 1,023 adults with a margin of error of 4 percentage points. CNN’s poll was conducted Jan. 9 through 14 among a random national sample of 1,003 adults with a margin of 3.7 percentage points.
The Hill