Supreme Court approval rating sinks to a new low, poll finds. What caused shift?

Miami Herald

5 days ago

The U.S. Supreme Court's approval rating has sunk to an all-time low, dropping below 40% for the first time ever, according to a new Gallup poll.
The decline was driven by record-low shares of Democrats and independents expressing support for the high court. At the same time, Republican support has ticked upward, resulting in the largest partisan gap on record.
The findings come 'amid a highly polarized U.S. political and media climate, which often leads to greater scrutiny of the actions of political actors and government institutions,' according to Gallup.
They also come in the wake of several controversial court decisions, including the 2022 reversal of Roe v. Wade — which overturned the constitutional right to an abortion — and the 2024 landmark ruling granting presidents broad immunity from criminal prosecution.
Here is a breakdown of the results:
In the poll, 39% of respondents said they approved of the way the high court has handled its job — the lowest figure since Gallup began asking this question in 2000.
This is down five points from 44% in 2024. But, it is largely consistent with the figures recorded between 2022 and 2023, which fluctuated between 40% and 43%.
In the late 2010s, by contrast, the court's approval rating was generally higher, bouncing between the high 40s and low 50s.
Prior to that, the rating swung up and down significantly, dropping to 42% in June 2005 and rising to a record high of 61% in August 2009.
In the latest survey — which sampled 1,002 U.S. adults July 7-21 — Democrats expressed their lowest-ever support for the high court. Just 11% said they approved of the nine-member court's performance, down from 15% in 2024 and 23% in September 2023.
Likewise, an all-time low share of independents, 34%, expressed approval, marking a 10-point drop from July 2024, according to the poll, which has a margin of error of 4 percentage points.
On the other hand, 75% of Republicans said they approved of the Supreme Court, up from 72% in September 2024. The current GOP rating is only surpassed by an 80% approval rating recorded in January 2001.
The current partisan divide widens a gap that emerged around July 2022, following the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. Prior to that, in September 2021, Republicans and Democrats offered similar approval ratings — 45% and 36%, respectively.
In recent years, several members of the court — which holds a 6-3 conservative majority — have weighed in on its declining approval ratings and loss of public confidence.
'When courts become extensions of the political process, when people see them as extensions of the political process, when people see them as trying just to impose personal preferences on a society irrespective of the law, that's when there's a problem,' Justice Elena Kagan, who was nominated to the court by President Barack Obama, said in 2022, according to Politico.
On the other hand, around the same time, Chief Justice John Roberts, an appointee of President George W. Bush, said, 'Simply because people disagree with an opinion is not a basis for questioning the legitimacy of the court.'