Joe Biden Approval Rating Beats Only Donald Trump and Gerald Ford's 100-Day Score: Poll

Joe Biden's approval rating after nearly 100 days in office was higher only than that of Donald Trump and Gerald Ford, a new poll suggests, with many voters questioning the president's handling of the border crisis.

According to a Langer Research Associates (LRA) poll, conducted for ABC News and The Washington Post, Biden scored a 52 approval rating after 100 days in office.

The average at the 100-day stage for the 14 presidents from Truman to Biden is 66 percent, according to previous ABC/Post polls.

Only Ford in 1974—whose rating fell to 48 percent following his unpopular pardon of Richard Nixon—and Donald Trump at 42 percent, scored lower than Biden at this stage in their respective presidencies.

President Biden will have been in office 100 days on Friday, April 30.

The results of the latest poll was largely split among party lines: 90 percent of Democrat voters polled approved of Biden, compared to 13 percent of Republicans. Among voters for independents, Biden scored a 47 percent approval rating.

"The intensified partisanship of recent years is a factor in Biden's overall rating," the authors of the poll said. "Just 13 percent of Republicans approve of his work in office, exactly matching Democrats' approval of Trump at 100 days."

The ABC/ Post poll, which spoke 1,007 adults between April 18 to 21, also suggested:

• Biden's pandemic relief package won 65 percent approval
• His handling of the pandemic won 64 percent approval
• Proposal to raise corporate taxes won 58 percent approval
• His $2 trillion infrastructure package won 52 percent approval
• And Biden also won 52 percent approval on his handling of the economy

Biden has, however, won strong approval ratings for his pandemic relief package and of his handling of the pandemic, standing at 65 percent and 64 percent respectively.

But, his support falls into the 50s when it comes to his proposal to raise corporate taxes, 58 percent, and his $2 trillion infrastructure package, which stands at 52 percent.

Among issues dragging down Biden's approval rating was his administration's handling of the ongoing crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border, the poll suggested, with just 37 percent of those asked believing it is being handled well.

More than half (53 percent) of those polled were concerned that Biden will increase the size of the government, but the poll also suggested the public's preference for smaller government is at its lowest in nearly 30 years.

The poll also suggested that 40 percent of voters think Biden is "too liberal", more than his Democratic predecessors at 100 days—33 percent said they believed that of Barack Obama and 26 percent of Bill Clinton—according to past surveys. More Americans thought Obama was "too liberal" as his presidency continued.

The poll's authors added: "By contrast, Biden's rating for handling the economy is essentially the same as Trump's in January, marking this as a clear challenge. Indeed, just 42 percent of Americans rate the economy positively, far below its pre-pandemic level, 58 percent instead say it's in not-so-good or poor shape. Presidential fortunes often are closely linked to economic conditions."

Youth support for Joe Biden

President Biden will also be bolstered by a 63 percent approval rating with Americans aged 18 to 29, according to a separate new poll by the Institute of Politis at Harvard Kennedy School (IPHK).

That is the highest of any president since the survey was first carried out 21 years ago.

Biden's support peaked among his own base with 90 percent of Democrats approving and 86 percent of liberals, according to the LRA poll that was conducted March 9 to 22 and spoke to 2,513 young Americans about Biden's first 100 days in office.

It added the president had earned 82 percent of Black people's support and scored well with college graduates and women at 60 percent and 56 percent, respectively.