Few Republicans Would Be Sad To See Paul Ryan Go

Rumors are swirling around that Paul Ryan may step down as Speaker of the House of Representatives. While he is liked by a strong majority of Republicans, they wouldn’t be sad to see him go. 

The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds that 32% of Likely U.S. Voters think it would be good for the country if Ryan stepped down as speaker, while 20% feel it would be bad. Thirty-two percent (32%) believe it would have no impact on the country if the Wisconsin Republican resigned, and another 16% are not sure. (To see survey question wording, click here.)

Just 30% of Republicans think it would be bad for the country if Ryan vacated his position. Twenty-one percent (21%) think it would be good, down from 32% in August 2017. Thirty-six percent (36%) say Ryan’s resignation would have no impact, while 13% are not sure. 

By comparison, 36% of GOP voters think it would be good for the United States if Mitch McConnell stepped down as Senate majority leader, while 17% believe it would be bad for the country. 

Still, Ryan is viewed favorably by members of his own party. Sixty percent (60%) of Republicans now have a favorable impression of the House speaker, up from 47% in August 2017. Thirty-three percent (33%) of Republicans have an unfavorable view of Ryan, down from 41% in the previous survey.

Among all voters, 38% have a favorable impression of Ryan, including 11% who view him Very Favorably. Fifty-two percent (52%) of voters have an unfavorable opinion of the Wisconsin Republican, with 29% who have a Very Unfavorable one. Ten percent (10%) are undecided.

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The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on March 27-28, 2018 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

When Republican John Boehner resigned as speaker of the House, 45% of GOP voters thought his departure was good for America. Only 13% felt it was bad for the country. 

Forty-six percent (46%) of Democrats think it would be good for the country if Ryan stepped down, while 17% feel it would be bad. Among voters not affiliated with either major political party, 28% say good, while 13% say bad.

Just 25% of Democrats and 28% of unaffiliated voters have a favorable impression of Ryan. Sixty-six percent (66%) of Democrats and 57% of unaffiliated voters view him unfavorably.

Among voters who Strongly Disapprove of Trump, 45% think it would be good if Ryan was out as speaker, a view shared by 30% who Strongly Approve of the job Trump is doing as president.

Trump supporters have a much more favorable opinion of Ryan compared to those who disapprove of the president.

Most of all voters continue to believe the Republican-led Congress is doing a poor job, perhaps in part because they lack faith that lawmakers will do anything about the biggest issues facing the country. 

Seventy-one percent (71%) think that opposition between Trump and Democrats in Congress over most major issues is due primarily to partisan politics. But half (51%) feel it’s better for the country if Congress works with the president most of the time.

Voters started the year favoring the Democrats, and while the party still leads, more voters are pulling for the Republicans as midterm elections get closer. 

Forty-two percent (42%) of voters agree with Senator Rand Paul’s statement: “When the Democrats are in power, Republicans appear to be the conservative party. But when Republicans are in power, it seems there is no conservative party.” 

In October, 57% of GOP voters believed the Republican Party should be more like Trump. 

Additional information from this survey and a full demographic breakdown are available to Platinum Members only.

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