Economic Outlook: U.S. Adults View Conditions as “Poor” in Recent Survey, While Political Confidence Dips Across the Board.

According to Gallup, a recent survey found that twenty-four percent of U.S. adults believe the current economic conditions are either “excellent” or “good,” while thirty-two percent think they are “only fair.” However, forty-four percent of respondents rated the economic conditions as “poor.” Despite an overall decrease in positive ratings in the past month, the number of people who gave negative ratings increased since March.

In April, political outlooks dimmed across the board, with Democrats experiencing a four-point decline in their index score from 35 to 31 compared to March. Independents also saw a significant drop of 10 points, going from -28 to -38. Republicans overwhelmingly viewed economic conditions as poor, with their confidence falling from -62 in March to -71.

The overall index experienced a sharp decline during the early stages of the pandemic, going from +41 in February 2020 to -32 in April 2020. Since then, it briefly went above zero in April and June before returning to negative territory. The survey took place amid rising gas prices and inflation, declining stock market gains, and high interest rates. The survey involved 1,001 adults and had a margin of error of 4 percentage points. For additional information on this topic, please refer to The Hill’s Lauren Irwin article.