Trump’s approval rating spikes in Florida

Donald Trump’s approval rating has ticked up in Florida — and now matches the highest number he’s enjoyed in the state since becoming president.

The catch: It’s still not very good.

A Florida Atlantic University poll released Tuesday found 43 percent of the state’s voters approve and 45 percent disapprove of Trump’s performance, a net negative of 2 percentage points.

The poll showed sharp divisions along party lines with 77 percent of Democrats disapproving of Trump’s performance and 78 percent of Republicans approving.

Among independent voters, 39 percent approved and 40 percent disapproved.

In July, the same poll found Trump’s net negative was 6 percentage points. In May it was also 2 percentage points.

The president’s Florida numbers continue to outpace his national numbers. Nationally, a greater share of voters disapprove of Trump’s performance than in Florida.

The RealClearPolitics average of national polls, which includes eight current surveys, shows his approval at 43 percent and his disapproval at 52 percent, a net negative of 9 percentage points.

The survey of 800 Florida registered voters was conducted online and through automated calls to people with landline telephones Thursday through Monday.

The FAU Business and Economics Polling Initiative said it had a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points. Breakdowns for smaller groups, such as Democrats, Republicans and independents, have higher margins of error.

Trump’s current approval rating of 43 percent matches his previous high, in May.

The deep divisions over Trump haven’t changed much since the November 2016, when Trump won the state’s 29 electoral voters with 49 percent of the vote. Hillary Clinton received 47.8 percent.

In February, he had a net negative of 3 points. Previous FAU surveys found Trump had a net negative of 6 points in November 2017; 10 percentage points in August 2017; 9 percentage points in June 2017; and 2 percentage points in March 2017.

The biggest change during the course of Trump’s presidency has been the dramatic decline in the percentage of Florida voters who were undecided. In March 2017, when Trump was well known but still new to the job, he had 36 percent approval and 38 percent disapproval — with a total of 26 percent who were neutral or didn’t have an opinion.

In the latest survey, just 13 percent don’t have a view.