President Trump’s approval rating hit a new low just weeks before the midterm elections, according to a new national poll from The New York Times and Siena University. Just 36 percent of likely voters approved of Mr. Trump’s performance, while 59 percent disapproved — his lowest rating in any Times/Siena poll. More than two-thirds of independent voters also disapproved of his job performance.
Likely voters preferred Democratic candidates over Republicans by 11 percentage points in their congressional districts, a slight improvement for Democrats since last month. The national political environment is bleak for Republicans, with Americans broadly disapproving of economic conditions under the Trump administration. Three-quarters rated the economy as fair or poor, and a majority blamed Mr. Trump for the decline. 69 percent disapproved of his handling of the cost of living, 65 percent disapproved of his handling of the war in Iran, and nearly three-quarters disapproved of his handling of gas prices above $4 a gallon.
Despite these challenges, Democrats still face serious hurdles, particularly in their bid to win control of the Senate. They are trying to flip seats in Republican-leaning states including Texas, Iowa, Alaska and Ohio, which Mr. Trump won by double digits in 2024. Other polls show tight races in several key Senate contests.
The deep economic frustration has even broken into the coalition that elected Mr. Trump to his second term. Over the past year, Democrats have improved their standing among men, young voters and Hispanic voters. Paul Gettings, a Republican who lost his job running a logistics company in June, said he supported Mr. Trump in 2024 but plans to back Democrats this year, citing frustration with high gas prices, the war in Iran and immigration enforcement in Simi Valley, Calif., where he lives.
Source: New York Times Top Stories · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing