US Republican Party's popularity hits a 20-year low
Even less Republicans have a positive view of their own party according to a new poll
The Republican Party's favorability ratings keep declining, even among those within the party itself, according to a new poll from the Pew Research Center.
The party is now the most unpopular it's been since 1992, with 62 per cent of those surveyed saying that they have an unfavorable view of the GOP. That represented a decrease from October, when 58 per cent of respondents had an unfavorable view of the party.
Pew Research reported that the decline in favorability since the fall "has largely come among Republicans themselves: In the current survey, 68 per cent of Republicans view their party positively, down from 79 per cent last fall." It comes amid the rise of Donald Trump, who looks more and more to be the party's standard bearer in the 2016 election.
The Democratic Party hasn't seen the same decline in popularity. Its favorability ratings haven't changed since the fall. And fewer people have a negative opinion of Democrats — 45 per cent of those surveyed had a favorable impression of the party, and 50 per cent had an unfavorable impression.
Democrats are also happier with their own party than Republicans, with 88 per cent saying they view their party positively, compared to 68 per cent of Republicans for the GOP.
These poll numbers come amid reports of an increasingly fractured GOP. Some pundits have blamed the party's problems on the controversial candidacy of Trump, who shocked establishment politicians by becoming the Republican frontrunner for the 2016 presidential race.