A new Princeton Survey Research Associates International survey finds that a majority of Americans disapprove of President Trump’s decision to withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement on climate change.
The poll, conducted after the announcement, finds that 54 percent of Americans disapprove of the decision, including 43 percent who strongly disapprove and 11 percent who somewhat disapprove. Meanwhile, 34 percent of Americans approve of the decision (23 percent strongly, 11 percent somewhat).
Opinions on the decision are divided strongly along party lines. Seven in ten Republicans approve of the decision to withdraw, including 55 percent who strongly approve and 16 percent who somewhat approve. Twenty-two percent of Republicans disapprove of the decision.
On the other hand, just one in ten of Democrats approve of the decision to leave the Paris Agreement. Eighty-four percent of Democrats disapprove, including 74 percent who strongly disapprove. Thirty-one percent of Independents approve of the decision (19 percent strongly, 12 percent somewhat), while 57 percent of Independents disapprove (43 percent strongly, 14 percent somewhat).
A full one-half of those living in rural areas approve of the president’s decision. Thirty-six percent of those in suburban areas approve, while just one-quarter of those living in urban areas approve. Sixty-four percent of those living in urban areas disapprove, including 51 percent who strongly disapprove.
Twenty-four percent of those ages 18-29 approve of the decision to leave the Paris agreement, making them the least supportive age group by a sizable margin. Men (39 percent) were more likely than women (29 percent) to approve of the decision and non-Hispanic whites (40 percent) were also more approving than non-white Americans (22 percent).
The survey was conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates International (PSRAI). Interviewing by landline and cellular telephones occurred June 1-4, 2017 among a random sample of 1,003 U.S. adults. Interviews were conducted in English and Spanish. Data have been weighted to parameters from the U.S. Census Bureau. The margin of error for results based on the complete set of weighted data is +/- 3.7 percentage points.
