More than half of the nation approves of how President-elect Donald Trump is handling his transition into office, according to a poll published Sunday.
Trump’s transition process received approval from 59% of respondents and disapproval from 41% of respondents in the poll, which was conducted by CBS News and YouGov.
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When broken down by party, the view on Trump’s transition was more sharply divided. Seventy-eight percent of Democrats disapproved of it, compared to 5% of Republicans, according to the poll.
The survey results come as Trump continues to staff his incoming administration, looking largely to loyal figures, such as surrogates from his campaign, his personal defense attorneys, and his allies in the media, to fill top positions.
Two of Trump’s most prominent Cabinet picks, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., whom Trump nominated to be secretary of state and Health and Human Services secretary, respectively, received better approval ratings than former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard and Pete Hegseth, Trump’s respective choices for director of national intelligence and secretary of defense.
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In terms of which Cabinet selections garnered the most support by demographic, Kennedy received the highest percentage of support from Republicans, people under 30, and white people without college degrees. Rubio received the highest percentage of support from Democrats, people over 65, and white people with college degrees.
The poll also showed there was a sense of optimism across the country. Sixty-one percent of respondents said America’s best days are “right now” or “in its future.” The remainder said they were “in its past.”
In terms of Trump’s election victory, 55% said they were “happy” or “satisfied” with it. A vast majority of respondents, 83%, said they felt his election win was legitimate. Thirty-two percent of Democrats felt it was not legitimate, compared with 14% of independents and 2% of Republicans who felt the same.
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Many of the poll’s findings that were favorable to Trump had a partisan tilt. For example, 85% of Democrats said they were “concerned” or “scared” about what Trump will do as president, while only 5% of Republicans said the same.
During the election, Democrats repeatedly warned that Trump was a threat to women’s rights and democracy. The claims were largely driven by the overturning of Roe v. Wade during Trump’s first term, his intense rhetoric about his political rivals, and his false claims about winning the 2020 election. The poll reflected these views.
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It found that 71% of Democrats felt Trump would threaten their “rights and freedoms” as president. When factoring in Republicans and independents, only 37% felt that way overall.
The poll was conducted Nov. 19 to 22 among 2,232 respondents.
