Thirty-five percent (35%) of U.S. voters have a favorable opinion of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey.

Just 27% say the same about other members of the congressional leadership including Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, House Minority Leader John Boehner and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (see crosstabs).

Pelosi is clearly the best-known member of that group: 92% have an opinion about her one way or the other. Just 75% have an opinion on Reid, a Democratic senator from Nevada, and just over 60% have any opinion on the Republican leaders John Boehner of Ohio and Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.

More voters have an unfavorable opinion than a favorable one of all four legislators.

Congress, as an institution, receives poor grades from a majority of American voters. Additionally, by a two-to-one margin, voters believe that no matter how bad things are, Congress could always make them worse. Sixty-seven percent (67%) trust their own judgment on economic issues more than they trust the average member of Congress.

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Overall, 57% have an unfavorable opinion of Pelosi, while 48% say the same of Reid. Thirty-five percent (35%) offer a negative opinion on Boehner, and that number is 34% for McConnell. The lower unfavorable ratings for Boehner and McConnell are simply a product of lower name recognition. Typically, as members of Congress get better known nationally, their negative ratings go up.

On a net basis, Pelosi and Reid get positive reviews from within their own party while Boehner and McConnell do not.

Fifty-eight percent (58%) of Democrats have a favorable opinion of Pelosi while only 35% say the opposite. For Reid, the numbers from Democrats are 40% favorable and 28% unfavorable.

Just 29% of Republicans have a favorable opinion of Boehner and 36% hold an unfavorable view. The comparable numbers for McConnell are 33% favorable and 34% unfavorable. Forty-four percent (44%) of Democrats don’t know enough about McConnell to have an opinion, and 41% of Democrats say the same about Boehner.

All but four percent (4%) of Republicans have an opinion on Pelosi, and only 19% of GOP voters are unsure about Reid.

Pelosi was viewed favorably by 43% of Americans shortly after becoming the first woman speaker of the House in January 2007. Her ratings peaked at 49% in early February of that year.

Reid, Boehner, and McConnell have always been less well known to the general public.

Survey participants were simply told the name of the person, not their title or party affiliation.

Vice President Joseph Biden does much better than the legislators. Fifty-two percent (52%) have a favorable opinion of him while 43% do not. These numbers are roughly comparable to Biden's ratings in late November several weeks before he formally took office.

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See survey questions and toplines. Crosstabs are available to Premium Members only.