In deep-blue Mass., Joe Biden’s approval stands at 45 percent 

Politics

Most of those polled said they don’t have confidence in the federal government’s ability to “respond to the needs of the American people.”

President Joe Biden is not so popular in Massachusetts, according to the results of a new poll.

A MassINC poll released Thursday found that of 1,002 state residents surveyed this month, 45 percent said they have a favorable view of the commander-in-chief, while 39 percent indicated they hold an unfavorable view.

Fourteen percent of other respondents said they were undecided about their view of the Democratic president. One percent declined to answer.

Still, Biden is more likable in the Bay State than his 2020 opponent, former President Donald Trump, who carries a 28 percent favorability rating, with the vast majority — or 62 percent of poll respondents — holding an unfavorable view of Trump.

The poll was, notably, conducted between June 8 and 12 — before the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling last week to overturn the landmark abortion rights case Roe v. Wade. The decision has infuriated many Democrats, causing friction within the party, with critics who are urging Biden and other party leaders to take steps to codify abortion into federal law.

Other recent decisions from the court have reflected the new conservative-slant in action, including rulings that overturned a New York handgun carrying law and capped the Environmental Protection Agency’s ability to enforce the Clean Air Act to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from power plants.

But even before the slate of recent decisions, Massachusetts residents were mixed over their opinions of the Supreme Court, with 34 percent of those polled holding a favorable view of the court and an equal number of respondents having an unfavorable view. Another 29 percent were undecided, two percent preferred not to answer, and 1 percent said they never heard of the court.

On Thursday, Biden, during a press conference in Spain, said he would support an exception to the Senate filibuster to protect access to abortion.

“If the filibuster gets in the way, it’s like voting rights,” Biden said, referencing the other issue where he backs forgoing the filibuster.

The president said there should be an “exception to the filibuster for this action to deal with the Supreme Court decision.”

Progressive members of the party, including Massachusetts Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley, have pushed for abolishing the filibuster — the rule requiring a supermajority to pass bills in the Senate — outright. Some have also called for expanding the number of justices on the Supreme Court.

The latest poll asked respondents about several potential changes to how the federal government functions and found that most of those polled in Massachusetts support, to some degree, eliminating the filibuster.

Twenty-nine percent of respondents polled strongly support doing so, while 23 percent said they somewhat support the change. Another 13 percent somewhat oppose the maneuver, while an additional 13 percent strongly oppose doing so. Twenty-two percent of residents polled said they were unsure.

Similarly, most residents polled backed increasing the number of justices on the Supreme Court from nine to 13, with 24 percent in strong support and 28 percent indicating they somewhat support the idea. Thirteen percent of people polled said they somewhat oppose expanding the court, and 18 percent said they are strongly against that option. Eighteen percent were unsure.

At large, most of those polled said they don’t have confidence in the federal government’s ability to “respond to the needs of the American people.”

A mere 8 percent responded saying they have a lot of confidence and 29 percent said they had some confidence. Most, or 38 percent, said they have “not much” confidence and another 21 percent have no confidence at all. Four percent were unsure.

Material from the Associated Press was used in this report.