Poll: Biden ‘Likable’ But Not a ‘Strong and Decisive Leader’

While more than half (60 percent) of  Americans think President Joe Biden is “likable,” only 37 percent think he is a “strong and decisive leader,” according to a new poll. 

Gallup surveyed 811 U.S. adults between between Jan.3-16 about how Biden ranks in seven positive character quality categories. The results have a margin of sampling error of ±4 percentage points at the 95 percent confidence level. According to the survey report, Gallup has historically found a “reciprocal relationship” between the ratings of a president’s personal qualities and their approval rating. 

As Biden’s average approval rating hovers in the low 40s/high 30s, less than half of U.S. adults think he displays five of the seven positive character qualities. The president scored the lowest score in the “strong and decisive leader category, and 38 percent believe he is “able to manage the government effectively. Forty-three percent think he “displays good judgment in a crisis,” 45 percent think he is “honest and trustworthy,” and 48 percent believe he “cares about the needs of people like themselves.”

Biden scored highest in the “likable” category, and 59 percent of U.S. adults reportedly think the president is “intelligent.”

The results from the poll “are significantly lower” than a previous Gallup survey during the 2020 general election campaign asking U.S. adults to rate Biden in six out of the seven categories. Since September 2020, Biden saw the largest decrease (14 percentage points) in Americans’ belief that he can effectively manage the government — going from “one of his stronger attributes to one of his weakest.”

According to the report, the decline in positive ratings of Biden’s personal characteristics is mostly driven by independents and “to a lesser degree,” Democrats. Unsurprisingly, Republicans have always had a poor opinion of Biden. The survey found:

Independents’ assessments of Biden’s positive qualities ranged from 45 percent to 66 percent in 2020, and majorities thought Biden embodied four of the six characteristics measured. These ratings are now significantly lower — between 30 percent and 59 percent — with just likability and intelligence at the majority level.

Between 74 percent and 91 percent of Democrats think Biden “embodies each of the seven traits,” though Democrats view of three traits dropped drastically within the past two years. Effective government management dropped 19 points, strong leadership dropped 12 points, and caring dropped eight points. Ninety-one percent of Democrats still think Biden is intelligent.

Biden ranks the worst among former presidents Donald Trump (54 percent), Barack Obama (56 percent), and George W. Bush (63 percent) in the “strong and decisive leader” category. In stark contrast, leadership was “consistently rated as Trump’s strongest quality” throughout his term.

Views of Biden’s ability to manage the government effectively are also lower than his predecessors. He did receive a higher likability score than Trump, but Obama’s term average was much higher at 79 percent.