Politics

Obama’s approval ratings drop more than 10 points in 50-state Gallup poll

Amanda Carey Contributor
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Gallup released Barack Obama’s approval ratings from all 50 states on Wednesday — the president’s average approval rating fell from 58 percent in 2009 to 47 percent in 2010.

Obama’s home state of Hawaii and the District of Columbia had the highest approval ratings, with 68 percent and 84 percent respectively. Citizens of Wyoming have the lowest opinion of the president. There, only 28 percent approve of how Obama has handled the presidency.

The 10 states with the highest ratings all traditionally lean blue. After D.C and Hawaii, they are Maryland, New York, Delaware, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, California, Connecticut and Illinois.

The 10 states with the lowest approval ratings are Wyoming, Idaho, West Virginia, Utah, Oklahoma, Alaska, Kentucky, Montana, Arkansas and Kansas.

Overall, the president’s approval ratings fell in all 50 states, though by varying degrees. The state where Obama’s rating fell the most is Vermont. There, his 2010 rating fell 15.2 percentage points from 2009 levels.

The new data also reveals a glimpse into the 2012 presidential election cycle, and which states could turn out to be hotly contested. States such as Florida, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Ohio and Nevada all had 2010 ratings within 1 percentage point of the national average, which suggest they may all be key battleground states in 2012.