A majority of Americans are pessimistic about where the country will be in another 12 months from now - an almost 20 percent increase compared to a similar survey taken after President Joe Biden’s first 100 days in office.
A new ABC News/Ipsos poll found that 55 percent of Americans say they are pessimistic about the direction the country is headed while 45 percent say they are optimistic.
In early May, a similar poll found that 36 percent said they were pessimistic about the future of the country while 64 percent said they were optimistic.
After six months in office, the president is receiving mixed reviews for his handling on a range of issues, including the COVID-19 pandemic, the economy, and the troop withdrawal from Afghanistan.
The latest survey found that pessimism is being expressed among Democrats, Republicans, and independents.
Among Democrats and Republicans, optimism is down around 20 percent.
A majority of Americans are pessimistic about where the country will be in another 12 months from now - an almost 20 percent increase compared to a similar survey taken after President Joe Biden’s first 100 days in office
A new survey found that more Americans disapprove of President Joe Biden's handling of immigration, crime, and the economic recovery. Biden is seen above in Arlington, Virginia on Friday
There is an even steeper drop in optimism among independents - 26 percent, according to the survey, which interviewed 527 adults on Friday and Saturday.
The respondents polled by ABC News/Ipsos are broken down into partisan loyalties, with 31 percent of those surveyed Democrats, 24 percent Republicans, and 36 percent independents.
In May, 89 percent of Democrats said they were optimistic about the direction of the country over the next 12 months.
The latest survey, however, shows that just 71 percent of Democrats said they were optimistic over where the country is headed.
Optimism among independents has declined by 26 percentage points - from 64 percent in May to just 38 percent today.
A majority of the country largely approves of Biden’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, with 63 percent saying the president is doing a good job on that front, according to the survey.
Jack Herrington, a student at the University of Memphis in Tennessee, receives a dose of the COVID-19 vaccine on Thursday. The fear of another lockdown due to the spread of the contagious Delta variant has Americans worried, according to a new survey
But that figure is low compared to previous polls which showed Biden’s approval rating as overwhelmingly positive.
In late March, surveys showed as much as 72 percent of the public approving of the president’s performance as it relates to COVID-19.
The lower polling numbers could be a reflection of a widespread fear among Americans that the government may re-impose lockdown measures to mitigate the spread of the highly contagious Delta variant.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, said that the country is in an ‘unnecessary predicament’ of
