Amid the collapse of the Affordable Care Act repeal in the U.S. House of Representatives, Paul Ryan’s image is taking a hit — 39% of Americans have a favorable opinion of the House speaker, down nine percentage points from November. Ryan’s unfavorable rating has increased 12 points, and his image is more negative than positive for the first time since Gallup first asked about him in 2012.
In 2012, Mitt Romney selected Ryan as his running mate during that year’s presidential election. At that point, 25% of Americans viewed him favorably, 17% viewed him unfavorably, and 58% had never heard of him or had no opinion.
Although Ryan soon became better known, opinions of him became only slightly more positive than negative.
Ryan assumed office in October 2015 after John Boehner retired from the position. Ryan, who previously had been chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, came to the speakership reluctantly, initially not wanting to be a candidate.
Ryan’s favorable ratings rose to 42% after succeeding Boehner and to 48% last November after Donald Trump was elected president in a Republican sweep.
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