A new Gallup poll finds the Republican Party with a favorable rating of 28 percent — the lowest rating either party has registered since Gallup first started asking the question in 1992. Along with being the lowest rating in 21 years, the 28 percent approval number also represents a 10-point drop since the Republicans' previous approval rating of 38 percent.
In more bad news for the GOP, Gallup finds that "more than six in 10 Americans now view the GOP unfavorably." This, too, is a new record.
Regarding the polls' implications, Gallup's Andrew Dugan notes that while both parties have seen their favorability drop in light of the ongoing government shutdown, Republicans are "clearly taking a bigger political hit."
Self-identified Republicans are more than twice as likely to view their own party unfavorably (27%) as Democrats are to see their own party unfavorably (13%). The GOP's unfavorable rating among Republicans is up eight points from September, compared with a one-point rise in Democratic Party unfavorables among Democrats. These findings may be consistent with the widely circulated narrative that the Republican Party is internally splintered on how best to handle the budgetary negotiations.
Independents, meanwhile, remain unimpressed with both parties: Thirty-two percent view the Democratic Party favorably, while 27% view the Republican Party favorably.
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