Jewish approval of President Barack Obama is dropping, a new national survey has found.
Some 51 percent of American Jews approve of the job Obama is doing, compared to the 44 percent who disapprove, according to a recently completed American Jewish Committee survey.
The numbers represent a drop from the 57 percent approval rating Obama got from Jews the last time the AJC did a survey, in March, and a sharp decline from the 79 percent approval rating Obama had among Jews in a May 2009 poll. Obama captured 78 percent of the Jewish vote in the 2008 presidential election.
The survey also showed 49 percent approving of the Obama administration’s handling of U.S.-Israel relations, and 45 percent disapproving. The AJC’s March survey registered a 55 percent approval rating for Obama on that issue, with 37 percent disapproving.
Until now, Jewish approval of Obama has usually exceeded that of the general population by more than 10 points, but this latest poll puts Obama’s Jewish approval rating at just six points higher than the national average of 45 percent.
The poll also showed a spike in Jewish support for Republicans in Congress — from percentages in the low 20s in previous elections to 33 percent in this poll.
The margin of error for the poll is 3 percent. For the survey, Synovate, formerly Market Facts, interviewed 800 self-identified Jews selected from a consumer mail panel between Sept. 6 and Oct. 10.
Regarding the issue of Obama’s handling of the economy, Jewish approval has declined since the March survey. In the current poll, 45 percent approve and 51 percent disapprove of Obama’s actions. In March, the numbers were 55 percent approving and 42 percent disapproving.
“To me, the common denominator pretty much across the board is a sense of growing anxiety and apprehension,” said David Harris, executive director of the AJC. “There’s a sense that things here and abroad are not necessarily getting better.”
By contrast, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s approval has risen: 62 percent of the respondents approve and 27 percent disapprove of his handling of U.S.-Israel ties, compared to 57 percent approving and 30 percent disapproving in March.
Harris said the most surprising result of the poll is that a majority of Jewish voters back Arizona’s new immigration law. The survey asked its Jewish respondents: “A new law in Arizona gives police the power to ask people they’ve stopped to verify their residency status. Supporters say this will help crack down on illegal immigration. Opponents say it could violate civil rights and lead to racial profiling. On balance, do you support or oppose this law?” The result was a slim majority in favor of the law: 52 percent to 46 percent.
In a question about Iran, about 59 percent of respondents support and 35 percent oppose the idea of the United States taking military action to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons. And about 70 percent support and 26 percent oppose the idea of Israel taking such military action.
American Jews remain nearly unanimous, at 95 percent, in supporting a proposal requiring Palestinians to recognize Israel as a Jewish state in a final peace agreement. In March and in 2009, the figure was 94 percent. Six percent said that all West Bank settlements should be dismantled, while 56 percent called for some and 37 percent called for none to be dismantled.