Obama's approval rating just hit its highest level in 7 years
President Barack Obama's approval rating has soared to its highest level since his first year in office, according to a new survey released Wednesday, two weeks after the election of Donald Trump.
The CNN poll found that 57 percent of respondents approved of Obama's job performance. It marked a slight uptick from late October and the highest level of satisfaction in Obama since September 2009, when 58 percent of adults polled approved.
More Americans also view Obama favorably, the poll showed. The president had a 59 percent favorability rating in the poll, which was also the highest since late 2009. Just 38 percent of Americans view him unfavorably.
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The numbers present an interesting contrast with Trump, who looks set to come into office as one of the least popular presidents in recent memory. Despite a clear uptick since his stunning election win, just 47 percent of Americans say they view him favorably, according to the CNN poll, compared with 50 percent who see him in an unfavorable light.
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Obama's rising popularity was apparent throughout the 2016 campaign cycle, which featured two of the most unpopular major-party nominees in history. Many political observers viewed it as a potential boon for Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.
Despite being one of the harshest critics of Trump on the campaign trail and often calling him "unfit" for the presidency, Obama has embraced a more conciliatory tone toward his eventual successor since Trump's victory. Last weekend, he suggested he would refrain from criticizing Trump when he becomes president.
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