ROCK HILL, S.C. -- Winthrop University polled nearly a thousand South Carolina residents on various political issues, ranging from President Donald Trump’s approval rating to the biggest problems facing the United States.
South Carolina is a dominantly conservative state, so it’s no surprise that President Trump’s approval rating is higher there than the national rating.
However, his disapproval rating in South Carolina is steadily rising. The disapproval rate was 47 percent last spring. Now it’s up to 50 percent.
“Maybe there’s some people that are saying, ‘maybe I don’t really agree with everything he says’,” one Winthrop student said.
Poll director Scott Huffmon described President Trump as ‘underwater’ in the Palmetto state. His disapproval rating is higher than his approval rating, which is also true nationally.
The poll also asked South Carolina residents what they see as the biggest issues facing the country. At the top of the list: gun control. Huffmon said this was the first time gun control has ever been mentioned so frequently.
“That’s pretty surprising,” another Winthrop student said. “I feel like especially here in the southern states, people like their guns.”
Also a surprise, three-fourths of those polled said the economy is in good shape, but 61 percent said the country is going in the wrong direction. Maybe other trends are weighing more heavily than the condition of the economy.
“Reform the whole gun control thing, and we have a more open climate. It seems like everyone is kind of on their toes about what’s going on in the White House and in Congress.”
Poll respondents said the biggest issues facing South Carolina are infrastructure, education, unemployment/jobs, racism and gun control.