Trump’s Favorability Rating Climbs 8%, Lags Behind Previous US Presidents-Elect

42 percent of Americans view President-elect Donald Trump favorably, up from pre-election 34 percent, according to the poll.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Forty-two percent of US voters now view President-elect Donald Trump favorably, up from pre-election 34 percent, although he is behind previous presidents-elect, a new poll showed Thursday.

The Gallup poll found Republicans’ opinion of Trump has improved by 11 percent, with 82 percent now viewing him positively. The Democrats have shown an increase of 5 percentage points, to 10 percent.

The pollster, which has been tracking US citizens' opinions of presidents-elect since 1992, said Trump could see another boost in popularity after his swearing-in next January – the so-called honeymoon period – which was enjoyed by all previous presidents.

At the same time, the billionaire businessman has a lower favorability rating than Barack Obama had in the first days after his election in 2008. His support of 68 percent was the highest on record.

Then president-elect George W. Bush was viewed positively by 59 percent of those polled in 2000, while Bill Clinton was approved of by 58 percent of people in 1992.

The new poll was conducted via phone on November 9-13 among 1,019 adults living in all 50 US states and the District of Columbia.