Gallup: Nancy Pelosi Best Known, Least Liked of Congressional Leaders

All four leaders of the U.S. Congress are disliked by strong pluralities of the American electorate, but none more so than House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.

That's according to a new poll published by Gallup on Wednesday, which shows the former House speaker enjoys a 48 percent unfavorable rating, with only 31 percent of respondents reporting a favorable opinion. Thatnet -17 image score compares with -11 for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., -10 for Speaker of the House John Boehner, R-Ohio, and -8 for Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.

Only 11 percent of those surveyed had never heard of Pelosi, making her the best known among the four. Twenty-one percent had never heard of Reid, while Boehner and McConnell were unknown to 14 percent and 22 percent, respectively.

"Two years after Boehner replaced Pelosi as U.S. House speaker, Pelosi continues to be better known by Americans and maintains much of the high negatives she acquired during her stint in the job," according to Gallup. "Boehner isn't too far behind in either regard; however, given the incremental shifts seen to date in his ratings as speaker, it's unlikely that he will overtake her in recognition or unpopularity anytime soon. ...

"The implication for the 2014 elections is that neither congressional caucus has a strong front man or woman to lead its party's midterm campaign."