Poll: Anti-incumbent sentiment strong

Less than a quarter of voters in the United States say congressional incumbents deserve reelection, according to a Gallup poll released Wednesday.

The poll found only 22 percent of voters say most members of Congress deserve reelection. The latest results are up slightly from the 17 percent Gallup measured in January.

Seventy-two percent of voters, however, say most incumbents don’t deserve reelection.

{mosads}Gallup said its “deserve reelection” figure is on track to be the lowest it has measured in any election year.

In 2012, 36 percent said incumbents deserved to be reelected and one third said the same in 2010. By contrast, 58 percent of voters said incumbents deserved reelection in 1998. 

The survey found 28 percent of Democrats said incumbents deserve reelection while 22 percent of Republicans said the same as did only 16 percent of independent voters. 

Despite the low enthusiasm for Congress as a whole, half of voters say their own member deserves to be reelected. 

In 2010, 59 percent of voters said their own representative deserved it.

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Gallup noted that typically roughly nine in 10 of those seeking reelection end up winning, but the likelihood of an incumbent winning this year is lower than usual.

The poll was conducted April 24-30 and covered 1,336 registered voters. The margin of error is plus or minus 3 percentage points.