Trump sees massive drop in voters who view him as intelligent, new poll finds

Impact

The percentage of American voters who view President Donald Trump as “intelligent” has fallen 19 points since he was elected in November, according to a new Quinnipiac poll released Wednesday.

According to the poll, 55% of voters view Trump as intelligent, while 43% do not. That’s down from 74% who viewed him as intelligent in November 2016.

In an open-ended question, the survey also asked respondents to give the “first word that comes to mind” when they think of Trump. Sixty-four respondents said “strong” was the first word to come to mind, but “idiot” was a close second with 59 voters using that word.

The fact that more than half of voters view Trump as intelligent is one of the bright spots of the Quinnipiac poll.

The rest of the survey had little good news for Trump, finding his approval rating at a dismal 35%. More than half of voters, or 54%, strongly disapprove of Trump, while just 27% approve strongly.

Nearly two-thirds of voters, or 60%, disapprove of Trump’s response to the violent white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, that left a counterprotester dead.

“Elected on his strength as a deal-maker, but now overwhelmingly considered a divider, President Donald Trump has a big negative job approval rating and low scores on handling racial issues,” Tim Malloy, assistant director of the Quinnipiac poll, said in a news release.