Trump’s approval drops to 36% in New York Times-Siena poll, a new low two weeks before midterms

President Donald Trump’s approval rating has dropped to 36% in a new New York Times-Siena College poll, the lowest the survey has recorded for him, with less than two weeks to go before the midterm elections.

The poll, released Wednesday, found 59% of likely voters disapprove of Trump’s job performance. Democrats hold an 11-point advantage over Republicans in congressional preferences, according to the Washington Examiner, which reported the survey results.

The survey of 3,494 voters was conducted Oct. 12-19 and carries a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 1.9 percentage points.

Voters grade Trump on the economy and gas prices

Economic discontent drives much of the disapproval. Sixty-nine percent of voters said they disapprove of Trump’s handling of the cost of living, and 73% disapproved of his handling of gas prices. Nearly two-thirds disapproved of his handling of the war in Iran.

Twenty-two percent of voters named the economy, including jobs and the stock market, as the country’s most important problem, ahead of inflation and the cost of living at 11% and immigration at 10%.

The national average gas price stood above $4 a gallon, according to the report, with AAA’s tracker showing $4.26 on Oct. 21.

Campaign push continues

Trump has been campaigning for Republican candidates in Nevada, Arizona, Montana, Georgia, Kentucky, Kansas and North Carolina, with plans to visit 35 battleground locations. He is scheduled to appear in South Carolina on Wednesday and Iowa on Thursday, followed by Florida, Georgia and Michigan.

“I’m going to go to every one of those 35 places, and we’re going to see if we can get everyone elected,” Trump told reporters in the White House Rose Garden. “We’re going to really work hard.”

An earlier Fox News poll released last week also put Trump’s approval at 36%, a record low in that survey’s tracking.

Reporting based on coverage by the Washington Examiner.