Clinton’s unpopularity reaches new high, equals Trump: Poll
US Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton’s unpopularity among American voters has reached a new high, according to a new poll, putting her on par with her Republican rival Donald Trump.
The latest findings by the ABC News/Washington Post poll solidify Clinton and Trump’s positions as the two most unpopular presidential nominees in more than 30 years.
Among all adults, 56 percent now have an unfavorable view of Clinton, an increase of 6 points in three weeks, compared to 63 percent who have the same view about Trump.
Among registered voters, the two nominees have near-identical unfavorable ratings — 59 percent for Clinton and 60 percent for Trump.
Clinton’s growing unpopularity follows renewed focus on her use of a private email server while she served as secretary of state, as well as alleged conflicts of interest over her connections to the Clinton Foundation fundraising.
The shift erases a gain in popularity for Clinton after the Democratic National Convention last month. Her favorable rating ticked up from 42 percent in July to 48 percent in early August, before dropping to 41 percent in this poll.
Notably, Clinton’s unpopularity among women has rose from 43 percent to 52 percent during the last month, the first time in a year that most women have viewed her unfavorably.
Previous polls taken in the past several months have shown that Clinton and Trump were ranked among the most unpopular presidential candidates in America’s history.
Clinton and Trump’s historic low popularity raise uncertainties about voter turnout in the November election.
Trump, on the other hand, has not experienced a change in popularity overall, but some shifts among groups.
Most notably, his favorability has dropped 6 points among men while increasing 7 points among women, perhaps a reflection of his recent attempts at “softening” some of his positions.
Trump’s campaign has been marked by controversy from the beginning, including disparaging remarks about women, Mexican immigrants and Muslims.