Trump Approval Rating Slips as Handling of Key Issues Becomes More Negative
Trump's approval rating has slipped as views of his handling of key issues like immigration and military force have become more negative.
Objective Facts
Views of Trump's handling of key issues such as immigration policy and use of military force have become more negative. Pew Research Center surveyed 5,103 U.S. adults from April 20 to 26, 2026, with results representing the views of the full U.S. adult population. Trump's approval rating is weakest on handling inflation at 37 percent, followed by managing the Iran conflict at 39 percent. Reuters/Ipsos polling released Tuesday showed Trump's approval dropped to 34 percent, with disapproval at 64 percent. The president's handling of the overall economy reached its lowest point at 27 percent approval, with increasing costs including 40 percent rise in gas prices due to the conflict with Iran, and less than a quarter of Americans approving of his handling of the cost of living at 22 percent compared with 25 percent in March. Approval among Trump's 2024 voters has fallen: 78 percent now approve, down from 83 percent in January and from 95 percent at the start of his term.
Left-Leaning Perspective
The Democratic National Committee released messaging stating that Trump's economy continues to tank and his deadly and costly war with Iran has pushed gas prices to their highest point in years, with 34% of Americans approving of Trump's performance and nearly 70% disapproving of his handling of the cost of living, including more than 40% of Republicans. Democratic commentary noted that while voters are seeing through Trump's empty promises, that does not mean they suddenly support Democrats, as a CNN poll found Democrats trailing Republicans by 4 points in total party approval. Democratic strategist Doug Farrar told Reuters that economic weakness provides a huge opportunity for Democrats to make major strides in the midterms by focusing on issues traditionally more Republican, like national security, the economy and immigration. Democratic voices emphasized that nearly 100,000 manufacturing jobs have been lost since Trump took office, including almost 30,000 auto manufacturing jobs, and called for immediate legislative action to pass a law undoing the reckless Trump tariffs that spurred this historic industrial contraction and restrict future tariff implementation without congressional approval. Democrats are trying to capitalize on Trump's poor economic ratings heading into the midterms after the party's candidates found success on the issue in 2025. Democratic leaders like Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani are centering affordability issues in language voters can easily understand, though the broader Democratic Party needs to blanket the media with criticism and a clear outline of how Democrats can do better. Left-leaning outlets noted there is little sign that Democrats are capitalizing on Trump's shortcomings, with 74% of the public saying Democrats in Congress have the wrong priorities, and among independents both Trump and Democrats are seen as equally off-topic.
Right-Leaning Perspective
White House officials and allies offered a backward-looking defense, with their message being that things are still better than they were under Joe Biden, though this is not the stuff of a winning campaign message when voters are asking forward-looking questions about their grocery bills and gas tanks. Republican pollster Daron Shaw stated that Trump faces two difficult obstacles—the virtually unanimous and intractable opposition of Democrats and the stubbornness of high prices—while Republican officeholders believe the economic benefits of the One Big Beautiful Bill will kick in later this year, which will be critical for GOP prospects in the midterm elections. Republican officials highlighted their record on tax cuts via the One Big Beautiful Bill, efforts to reduce drug prices, and beefed-up border security. Republican pollster Micah Roberts, partner at Public Opinion Strategies, downplayed the decline, saying the numbers were not especially troubling, and that amid war, higher inflation and surging gas prices, a 5-point drop in approval is not that big a move, with Trump keeping 60% of the Republican Party very, very fired up and very much on his side. White House officials and their allies cautioned against writing the party's obituary, arguing that 2024 proved the political environment can change dramatically in weeks, and that internal polling circulating in the White House is not as dire as the public polling. White House spokesperson Kush Desai wrote that America remains on a solid economic trajectory thanks to the Trump administration's agenda of deregulation, tax cuts, and energy abundance, which delivered historic job, wage, and economic growth in Trump's first term. Republicans blamed Democrats for allowing millions of illegal aliens to flow through the border, unanimously opposing working families tax cuts, and being soft-on-crime, though there is bubbling frustration that Trump has been consumed by the Iran war and the construction of a $400 million White House ballroom.
Deep Dive
Trump's approval has declined as views of his handling of key issues like immigration and military force have become more negative, reflecting a convergence of economic pressures and foreign policy decisions. The sudden plunge in his cost-of-living approval started on March 13, two weeks after the president began his war with Iran, with gas prices hitting record highs since the conflict began on February 28, reaching a nationwide average of $4.30 a gallon on Thursday, according to AAA. This deterioration has been driven largely by his handling of the economy and prices, with Trump now underwater on every issue except border security, and his approval on prices—the issue voters care about most—fallen to a record -46. While the decline from Republicans stood out, dropping 17 points to the lowest level since 2017, MAGA voters remain stuck with the president at 96% approval, while non-MAGA Republican support declined by 19 points to 60%. Democratic pollster Jay Campbell argued it would be difficult for the president's numbers to bounce back in time to help Republicans for the midterms, stating it is hard to imagine policies that could have material enough impact to change public views on the economy. The decline is most pronounced among younger and Hispanic supporters, with approval among Hispanic Trump voters falling 27 points since early 2025 to 66 percent, compared with a 14-point decline among White Trump voters. White House officials cautioned against finality, noting that political environments can change dramatically in weeks and voters have short memories, with their plan being a familiar one: pivot to kitchen-table issues and flood battleground states with Trump and Cabinet surrogates. However, given the iron correlation between presidential job approval and losses for the party in power, the outlook appears dire: Republicans may gerrymander their way into seven more House seats, but Trump's 15-point drop in net approval rating since that effort began has likely wiped out more seats than Republicans have drawn themselves into.