The Democratic Party's favorability rating is currently at a 30-year low, according to a new poll from the Washington Post and ABC News, and President Barack Obama's job approval rating is the lowest of his presidency as well, at 40 percent.
The poll shows that 39 percent of Americans now have a "favorable impression" of the party, while 51 percent view the party unfavorably.
These numbers are particularly significant because it's the first time in the history of the poll data, since 1984, that Democrats have polled below a 46 percent favorability rating, reported the Post.
"Obama is at career lows in approval or his handing of immigration, international affairs and terrorism," said ABC News.
Two-thirds of those polled said Democrats and Republicans are equally to blame.
However, Democrats are still more popular than their GOP counterparts, who are viewed favorably by 33 percent of those polled, and unfavorably by 56 percent.
"Such views can carry a punch," reported ABC News. "An analysis conducted for this report shows that presidential approval ratings (in data since 1946) and views that the country's on the right track (since 1974) highly correlate with midterm gains or losses for the party in power."
"Moreover, an index of dissatisfaction, also produced for this study, finds that the public's unease on a range of issues strongly predicts vote preferences; these wide-ranging concerns emerge as a key factor in the 2014 contest. In addition to persistent doubts about the economy, for instance, 71 percent express worry about a terrorist attack and 65 percent say they're concerned about an Ebola epidemic - disquieting sentiments when confidence in the political system is so weak," ABC said.
A similar August poll found 49 percent of surveyed had a positive image, declining 17 percentage points among African Americans and 13 points among women, said the Washington Post, two of the most important Democratic constituencies.
