WASHINGTON, D.C. -- With victory secured, now comes the hard part for president-elect Barack Obama. As is true for any newly elected president, Obama now faces the challenge of putting together an administration that can work toward fulfilling his campaign promises to get the nation on the right track, as well as winning the cooperation of members of Congress on both sides of the political aisle, and gaining the approval of the American people.
To help better understand Americans' continuing reactions to Obama's historic election win, and his actions between now and his inauguration on Jan. 20, Gallup Daily will be tracking:
- Satisfaction with the way things are going in the United States. As of Election Eve, just 13% of Americans were satisfied and 86% were dissatisfied.
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Favorability of president-elect Obama and vice president-elect Joe Biden, which as of Election Eve were 61% and 52%, respectively.
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Americans' forward-looking optimism about what the new administration will be able to accomplish once it takes office.
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Job approval of President Bush in the last two months of his administration and job approval for President Obama beginning Jan. 20, 2009.
Gallup.Com will report these measures alongside the many other measures it has been tracking daily throughout the year, most notably Americans' views of the U.S. economy (overwhelmingly named as the most important issue in the just-completed election) and Americans' personal financial situations and overall well-being. Visit Gallup.com daily to see how Americans' views on the following change -- or do not change -- on a day-to-day basis in response to the new president's decisions and initiatives.
Gallup.com, as has been the case since the beginning of this year, will continue to report daily updates on Americans' well-being, mood, and health. These measures, which have been shown to change in response to political and economic events, will also help gauge how the new administration's decisions affect Americans at the most personal level.
Taken together, Gallup.com provides a unique and comprehensive collection of empirical measures of the attitudes of the American people, be they about their country or their personal lives. Each measure is updated daily, seven days a week. Consider Gallup.com a must-read report card on the new administration -- daily.
