Poll reveals Barack Obama remains the most popular living U.S. president
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A new CNN poll found Barack Obama holds the highest favorability rating among living U.S. presidents, outperforming both President Donald Trump and former President Joe Biden ahead of the opening of his presidential center.
This week, as his new presidential center opens, a new poll from CNN suggests former President Barack Obama remains the most popular living U.S. president, with favorability ratings significantly higher than those of President Donald Trump and former President Joe Biden.
According to the nationwide CNN/SSRS survey, 57% of Americans view Obama favorably. By comparison, 34% hold a favorable opinion of Trump, while 30% say the same of Biden. Obama also performs especially well among political independents, earning more than double the support of either Trump or Biden in that voting bloc.
The poll also found that Obama continues to enjoy overwhelming support within the Democratic Party. Although only about one in five Republicans view him favorably, that level of bipartisan support still exceeds the number of Democrats or Republicans willing to cross party lines in their views of Trump or Biden.
Among other living former presidents, George W. Bush received a 42% favorable rating compared with 33% unfavorable, while opinions of Bill Clinton were almost evenly divided.
The survey highlights how public perceptions of former presidents can evolve over time. Bush, who left office with historically low approval ratings, has seen his public image improve in the years since leaving the White House. Trump experienced a similar rebound before beginning his second term, though his favorability has since declined again.
Biden, meanwhile, has experienced a continued decline in public perception. After entering office with a 59% favorability rating, he left the presidency at 33%, and the latest poll places him at 30%, the lowest rating recorded for him in CNN polling. The number of Americans with no opinion of Biden has also increased.
The survey also points to a generational shift in how Americans view former presidents. More than four in 10 adults under 30 said they had no opinion of either Bush or Clinton, reflecting the fact that many younger Americans came of age politically during the Obama and Trump eras.
Among Democrats, nearly two-thirds named Obama as the president they admire most. Republicans overwhelmingly selected Trump, with Reagan finishing a distant second.
The poll was conducted by CNN and SSRS between May 7 and May 31, 2026, surveying 2,480 adults nationwide through online and telephone interviews. The poll carries a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 2.7 percentage points.