Significant majorities of registered voters now have an equally unfavorable opinion of both major party presidential candidates, according to a new survey released Wednesday, following a difficult stretch for Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign.
Fifty-nine percent of registered voters say their opinion of Clinton is unfavorable, while 39% say it’s favorable, according to the new poll from the Washington Post/ABC News.
Those numbers put Clinton on equal footing with Donald Trump, who also faces a daunting favorability deficit. Trump is viewed unfavorably by 60% of registered voters, compared to 37% who say they have a favorable opinion of the GOP nominee, according to the poll.
Clinton’s numbers have fallen since the Democratic convention last month. She registered at 40% favorable/57% unfavorable in July, according to Post/ABC polling — and then had a post-convention high of 46% favorable/52% unfavorable. The Post also found Clinton’s favorable numbers among all American adults at an all-time low.
The overwhelmingly negative numbers reflect the unhappiness of the 2016 electorate with both candidates, and show significant erosion among Clinton’s bases of support. The poll found that Clinton’s favorable ratings slid by 10-plus points among women, Hispanics, and liberals since a Post/ABC poll just after the Democratic convention.
Since the conventions, the Clinton campaign has grappled with a series of controversies related to her tenure at the State Department and increased scrutiny of its overlap with the Clinton Foundation — challenges which may have contributed to her fading poll numbers.
The Washington Post/ABC News poll was conducted between August 24 and 28, and surveyed 1,020 adults. It has a margin of error of 3.5 points.
