Poll: Obama favorability lowest of any president since 1980s

Charlotte - While it is too early to tell if the Democratic National Convention will give President Obama a favorable bounce, it is clear he needs one, according to a major pre-convention poll.

Mr. Obama has the lowest pre-convention personal popularity of an incumbent president in ABC News/Washington Post polls since the 1980s. The president’s popularity has declined with women and among registered voters, according to an ABC report. Only 47 percent of registered voters in the latest poll see Obama favorably overall, a 7 pint drop from April. Meanwhile, 49 percent rate him unfavorably. The poll marks the first time since February that more people consider him unfavorably than favorably, according to the poll published Tuesday. Obama’s slide is mostly among women who are registered voters – from 57-39 percent favorable-unfavorable in April to a numerically negative 46-50 percent now. The survey represents Obama’s lowest score among women voters in an ABC/Post poll since he took office. For a change, Obama’s rating among men was 50-47 percent favorable, or better than among women by a small percentage.