NOT IMPRESSED

Americans’ Disapproval of Congress Rockets to Record High Under Trump

Republicans are driving much of the decline in approval ratings, according to Gallup.

Americans’ disapproval of Congress under President Donald Trump matches a record high, new polling shows.

A Gallup poll conducted April 1 through 15 and released on Wednesday found that 86 percent of U.S. adults disapproved of Congress, tying the highest level recorded in more than 50 years of tracking. Just 10 percent approved, hovering near the all-time low of 9 percent recorded in 2013.

Congress’s approval ratings have fallen sharply during Trump’s second term in office. They stood at 17 percent in January 2025, climbed to 29 percent after his inauguration, and peaked at 31 percent in March 2025. But ratings fell sharply during and after the longest federal government shutdown in U.S. history last fall.

The partial shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)—now in its 10th week—appears to be a major driver of public dissatisfaction. According to Gallup, historically, shutdowns have coincided with spikes in congressional disapproval.

Three of the five highest disapproval peaks since 1974 “coincided with a government shutdown or the threat of one,” including the current DHS closure, the 2013 shutdown, and a near-shutdown in 2015.

Republicans are driving much of the decline in approval ratings, according to Gallup. After giving Congress a 63 percent approval rating in March 2025, just 20 percent of Republicans approve of the job Congress is doing, according to the latest poll.

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Democrats have continued to give the Republican-controlled Congress low marks, while independents’ ratings have stayed consistently low.

The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment.

The DHS has been shut down since mid-February, as lawmakers have been unable to reach a bipartisan agreement on funding and immigration policy.

Funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol has been blocked by Senate Democrats, who are demanding policy reforms following the fatal federal officer shootings of protesters Alex Pretti and Renee Good in Minnesota in January.

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Isabel van BrugenFreelance Writer

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