How South Carolinians feel about Trump nearly 100 days in, according to new poll

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCBD) – South Carolinians are split on how President Donald Trump is handling his job as he nears the 100-day mark, according to a new poll.

A Winthrop University poll released Monday found Trump’s approval rating among the general population of South Carolina is 44 percent, while 45 percent of respondents said they disapprove of the president’s job performance.

Looking only at those who expressed any opinion at all, the approval rating for Trump’s presidency so far jumps to nearly 50 percent.  

When broken down by party, however, a deeper divide emerges.

Among those who self-identify as Republicans, 80 percent approve of Trump. As for self-identifying Democrats, 85 percent disapprove of Trump’s handling of the job.

“We are seeing increased polarization, certainly in South Carolina, as well as around the nation, and that, of course, is stark in opinions about many things related to the Trump presidency but certainly Trump himself,” said Dr. Scott Huffmon, the Winthrop Poll director.

Still, the poll shows little change in South Carolinians’ attitudes toward the president as his term has gone on.

A February general population poll put Trump’s approval rating at 45 percent among all respondents and 53 percent among those who gave an opinion.

“Their attitudes over the past couple of months have remained consistent because it’s based entirely on Trump and his persona,” Huffmon posited. “The people who voted for him generally didn’t do a deep dive into the economic policies that he was putting forward. It was far more about culture, and he was a culture warrior for people like them, and that’s the main reason they supported him, and the people who opposed him pretty much felt the exact opposite.”

“So the reason we see a continuity in attitude is those feelings haven’t changed, and this flurry of policies that he’s enacted over the 100 days, most of them haven’t been felt by the average citizen,” he continued.

Tuesday will mark the 100^th day of Trump’s second term, a benchmark typically used to measure the early progress of a new administration.

Most national polling on Trump’s first 100 days shows his approval rating hovering in the mid-to-low 40s – slighter higher than his first term but still lower than where previous presidents were at similar points.

“That’s because we are so polarized,” Huffmon said. “It’s also because he was president before, so the grace period that a new president might get, he’s really not having the chance to take advantage of that.”

The weeks since Trump returned to office have been a whirlwind of activity to show Americans that his administration is relentlessly pursuing his promises.

Among those promises was Trump’s pledge to root out what he called waste, fraud, and abuse in the federal government. That effort, led by billionaire Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency, has become one of the most polarizing and consequential pieces of Trump’s first months in the Oval Office.

Musk said last week that he plans to take a step back from DOGE starting in May. His company, Tesla, has seen profits plunge since January, and its dealerships and charging stations have become targets for vandalism as people protest Musk’s effort to slash government funding and drastically cut the size of the federal workforce.

35 percent of all respondents said they have a very positive or somewhat positive view of Musk, while 45 percent said they had a very or somewhat negative view.

His favorability numbers among South Carolinians have dropped since February, a sign Huffmon said of Musk’s increasing divisiveness.  

“In February, a lot of people really weren’t sure of why he was so involved with Trump, what he was going to do with the administration,” Huffmon noted. “As that has become more clear, we’ve seen polarization increase, and the people that like it liking it more, the people that don’t like it disliking it more.”

That divide is illustrated through people’s feelings toward DOGE, specifically.

While nearly two-thirds of Republicans expressed positive feelings toward the initiative, more than half of Democrats said the opposite. But, more Democrats (13 percent) indicated they did not know well enough or were unsure of their opinion than Republicans (7 percent).  

“DOGE still isn’t clear, except among the strongest partisans, the people who are paying most attention to the news,” Huffmon said. “But the average citizen, it’s not real clear, and it won’t be until it affects their lives directly that their opinions will begin to solidify.”

The poll surveyed 1,546 adult residents of South Carolina online and by telephone, with a margin of error of plus or minus 2.49 percent. The results were weighted on sex, race, and age based on U.S. Census data.

It offers a snapshot of where South Carolinians as a whole stand on a range of issues, from their attitudes on transgender issues to diversity, equity, and inclusion programs to illegal immigration.

The results can be useful in understanding what all people in the Palmetto State care about, not just those who are consistent or likely voters, Huffmon argued.

“Just because South Carolina is ruby red in elections, that’s really a reflection of who turns out in elections,” he said. “When we take a look at what all residents of South Carolina, it’s a lot more evenly split than we would realize just looking at the partisan politics that go on.”  

The Associated Press contributed.