First lady Melania Trump’s public image seems to have taken a hit as she experiences a slight slump in her favorability rating, according to a poll.
While two-in-five respondents surveyed by Quinnipiac University say they have not heard enough from Trump to form an opinion of her, the research released Tuesday found that more than one-third think of her favorably; only 20 percent perceive her in a negative light. The study’s results indicate a slip in public approval of Trump, who in June recorded a 49 favorability rating, her highest so far.
The esteem with which Americans hold Trump contrasts with that of former first lady Michelle Obama. The poll showed Obama — who embarked this month on a national press tour promoting her memoir, Becoming — is enjoying her highest favorability rating of 63 percent since Quinnipiac University first started asking respondents how they felt about her in 2008. The survey, however, also reported Obama’s highest unfavorability rating of 24 percent.
Quinnipiac University’s research comes after Trump’s office generated a slew of headlines earlier in November following its unusual move of publicly calling for the removal of a White House aide, deputy national security adviser Mira Ricardel.
The poll was conducted among 1,046 adult voters nationwide from Nov. 14-Nov. 19 via landlines and cell phones. Its findings have a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.
