Trump’s Approval Rating Far Higher Among Men: Campaign Update

(Bloomberg) -- The gender gap in President Donald Trump’s approval rating is a massive 19 percentage points in a new poll.

An 7 News/Emerson College poll of registered voters nationwide found 57% of men approved of the job he is doing as president, while only 38% of women approved.

That is even higher than the 11 point gender gap in exit polls conducted in the 2016 election, which is tied with 1996 for the largest since 1980, according to the Center for the American Woman and Politics at Rutgers University.

The poll of 1,128 registered voters was conducted Jan. 21-23. The margin of error is 4.1 percentage points for men and 4.0 for women.

Biden, Sanders Run Neck-and-Neck in Poll (9 p.m.)

Former Vice President Joe Biden and Senator Bernie Sanders lead the Democratic field in a national poll released Thursday.

The 7 News/Emerson College Poll shows the former vice president with 30% support, followed closely by the Vermont senator at 27%.

The rest of the field is much farther down, with Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren at 13% and entrepreneur Andrew Yang at 8%. Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the founder and majority owner of Bloomberg LP, the parent company of Bloomberg News, is at 7% and former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg at 6%.

The poll of 497 Democratic primary voters nationwide was conducted from Jan. 21-23. This portion of the poll has a margin of error of 4.1 percentage points.

Trump Plans Pre-Primary Rally in New Hampshire (6:20 p.m.)

President Donald Trump won’t let Democrats have the spotlight to themselves during the New Hampshire primary.

As he did during a Democratic debate earlier this month, Trump will offer some counterprogramming: He is planning a massive rally on Feb. 10, the night before the New Hampshire primary.

Trump is technically on the ballot in the Granite State as well, facing token opposition from former Massachusetts Governor Bill Weld and former Representative Joe Walsh.

The rally will be held at the SNHU Arena, an ice hockey venue in Manchester that seats as many as 11,000.

Trump is also holding a rally in Iowa on Jan. 30, four days before the Feb. 3 caucuses.

Williamson Will Support Andrew Yang -- Sort Of (4:02 p.m.)

Self-help author and former presidential candidate Marianne Williamson says she will be supporting a fellow unconventional contender, entrepreneur Andrew Yang, in the early Democratic primaries.

In announcements on Instagram and Twitter, Williamson said she wasn’t endorsing Yang, but wants to help him continue in the race. She is expected to appear with him at a town hall event in Fairfield, Iowa, on Friday.

“I am not endorsing any presidential candidate at this time; I support all the progressive candidates,” she tweeted. “I’m appearing with Andrew Yang in Fairfield because I know the institutional obstructions to his candidacy and I want to see him continue in the race past Iowa.”

Williamson dropped out of the presidential race Jan. 10 after months of polling at less than 1% and flagging fundraising.

Buttigieg Holds High-Dollar Fundraiser in Iowa (2:20 p.m.)

Despite taking flak for his high-dollar fundraisers, Pete Buttigieg is moving ahead with a swanky event a week before the Feb. 3 Iowa caucuses.

The former South Bend, Indiana, mayor will hold a reception on Sunday in a location in Des Moines that will only be revealed to donors who confirm they are attending.

A limited number of tickets are available for $250, $500 and $1,000, but for the maximum primary donation of $2,800 attendees can also go to a “pre-reception.”

At a debate in December, Elizabeth Warren attacked Buttigieg for holding a fundraiser in a California “wine cave.” He responded that his campaign needs support “from everybody who is committed to helping us defeat Donald Trump.”

Bernie Sanders Jumps to First in New Hampshire (11:10 a.m.)

A new poll shows Bernie Sanders as the top pick for New Hampshire voters after support for the senator nearly doubled over the past month.

Sanders, who is from neighboring Vermont, jumped from fourth to first in a WBUR poll out Thursday.

He led the pack by double digits with 29%, up from 15% in December, followed by Pete Buttigieg with 17%, Joe Biden with 14% and Elizabeth Warren with 13%.

Aside from Sanders, all other candidates moved between 0 and 3 percentage points. The poll was conducted from January 17-21 and has a margin of error of 4.8 percentage points. WBUR is the Boston NPR affiliate. -- Emma Kinery

COMING UP:

Some of the Democratic candidates will debate again in New Hampshire on Feb. 7.

The first-in-the-nation Iowa caucuses will be held Feb. 3. The New Hampshire primary is Feb. 11. Nevada holds its caucuses on Feb. 22 and South Carolina has a primary on Feb. 29.

(Disclaimer: Michael Bloomberg is also seeking the Democratic presidential nomination. He is the founder and majority owner of Bloomberg LP, the parent company of Bloomberg News.)

--With assistance from Emma Kinery and Tyler Pager.

To contact the reporter on this story: Ryan Teague Beckwith in New York at rbeckwith3@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Magan Crane at mcrane19@bloomberg.net, John Harney

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