George Washington still ranks as Americans’ first president, according to a new poll out Friday.
According to Politico, a whopping 89% of Americans say they see the first president of the United States’ favourably.
According to a Public Policy Polling survey, the other popular presidents include Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, Teddy Roosevelt, John Adams, Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower, John F Kennedy, John Quincy Adams and Franklin D. Roosevelt.
Lincoln, with 85% favourability, just missed taking the top stop from Washington. Only two other presidents have a favourability rating over 70% — Jefferson at 74% and Kennedy at 70%.
Richard Nixon is by far the least popular, with 59% saying they have an unfavourable opinion of the scandal-ridden former commander in chief. Just 27 percent say they see Nixon positively.
Ten other former presidents hit negative numbers in the poll: Lyndon B. Johnson, Warren Harding, Millard Fillmore, Herbert Hoover, Calvin Coolidge, Barack Obama, Chester Arthur, Martin Van Buren, James Buchanan and George W Bush. Obama comes in with 46% saying they see him favourably and 49% unfavourably.
His predecessor, George W Bush, gets similar support, with 45% positive and 46% negative ratings.
Ronald Reagan is the 14th most popular president, Gerald Ford the 16th and Bill Clinton ranks 17th.
Eighty percent or more of those surveyed say they have no opinion on Franklin Pierce, James K Polk, Millard Fillmore or John Tyler. And over half of all Americans, or 56% say they have no opinion of one of the countries’ most important Founding Fathers, James Madison.
Among Republicans, 92% see Reagan favourably, while his fellow party member Lincoln garners an 84%. The Republicans’ most hated president is Obama, with 84% unfavourable, followed by Jimmy Carter, Clinton and LBJ.
Ninety percent of Democrats give Kennedy a positive rating — higher than either Washington or Lincoln. Democrats rank Nixon and Reagan as their least favourites, with the Bushes coming in next.
The poll surveyed 1,200 people February 9-12. The margin of error is plus or minus 2.8%.
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