Republicans Turn On Greg Abbott As His Texas Approval Rating Hits All-Time Low

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A new poll in Texas found that Gov. Greg Abbott’s approval rating has fallen to an all-time low due to his response to COVID.

Greg Abbott’s Approval Ratings Hit An All-Time Low

According to new data from the Texas Policy Project:

39% approved of the governor’s handling of the pandemic, while 53% disapproved.
68% of Republicans approved, while 20% disapproved. Democrats’ assessments were the inverse and more lopsidedly negative. Among independents, 34% approved and 52% disapproved.
Net approval decreased among all partisan groups, dropping by 7 percentage points among Republicans (from +56 to +49), by 14 points among Democrats (-71 to -85), and by 9 points among independents (-9 to -18).
41% approved of the job Abbott is doing, while 50% disapproved. His net approval rating decreased from even in June 2021 (44% approve/44% disapprove) to -9 in August, and registered a drop of 33 percentage points from the high point of his governorship in April 2020, the early days of the pandemic, when 56% approved and 32% disapproved.
Abbott’s job approval dropped among all partisan groups. It decreased most significantly among independents, dropping from 41% to 30% and decreasing from 77% to 73% among Republicans and 8% to 6% among Democrats.
Looking at the entire time series of Abbott’s ratings, his highest approval among Republicans was 89% (in October 2018, shortly before his reelection). His highest approval rating among Democrats occurred in April 2020, the period of his most proactive approach to halting the spread of COVID-19. His highwater mark among independents was 54%, in February 2019, shortly after his reelection.

Republicans Are Turning On Greg Abbott

Gov. Abbott is one of the Republicans who decided to follow Trump’s lead on the pandemic, and he is paying a heavy price. It is telling that Abbott’s approval rating has dropped below 50% with Republicans.

Pandemic fatigue is real, and even some Republicans are turning on Abbott for his insistence on making more Texans sick with COVID. Declining support among Independents is bad, but losing support among members of his own party is a potential career killer.

Greg Abbott is following Trump straight into the political dumpster.

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Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

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Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association

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