Obama Re-Election: Majority Don't Think President Deserves Second Term, According To CNN Poll

Do you think Barack Obama deserves to be re-elected, or not?

If you're like most Americans, your answer is "No," according to a poll released on Tuesday by CNN. The perception was even worse for members of Congress nationwide -- but respondents still indicated they were likely to re-elect their current Representative.

With identical numbers for all Americans as well as for just registered voters, 52 percent said the President does not deserve to be re-elected, while 44 percent said that he does. Four percent had no opinion.

Respondents indicated the lowest opinions of Congress dating back to the start of the poll in 1991.

"This is not a good year to be an incumbent, regardless of which party you belong to," CNN polling director Keating Holland told the network. "Voters seem equally angry at both Republicans and Democrats this year."

Obama fared better than members of Congress from either party, as 43 percent said that most Democrats deserved re-election and only 39 percent said the same of Republicans. Among registered voters, support of each party's members of Congress was even at 41 percent. The responses about reelection came with a margin of error of ±4.5 percent.

Whether or not respondents felt they deserved re-election, if forced to vote for a Congressional candidate today, 47 percent would pick the Republican candidate while only 45 percent would pick the Democrat. That portion of the survey had a margin of error of ±3 percent.

While Americans are traditionally more supportive of their own member of Congress than the body as a whole, the poll showed that only 51 percent of registered voters support their own Representative's return to Washington. That's the lowest result dating back to 1991, down from a record high of 68 percent in 1998. Opinion of members outside of respondents' districts also reached a record low, with only 34 percent saying that most deserved to be re-elected.

While all members of Congress are up for reelection this November, Obama has about two-and-a-half years until he faces a run in 2012. The poll did not ask whether voters would actually vote for him again, unlike the different types of questions posed about Congress. Overall, the President's approval rating has held steady over the last few weeks at 49 percent, one point up from his record low of 48 percent in early December but down from a recent high of 54 percent later that same month. He began his Presidency with a 76 percent approval rating.

More information about the poll, including perceptions on social class and a PDF of all the results, is available on CNN's website.