Donald Trump’s approval rating has plunged to a new low as the public backlash mounts against his war on Iran.
The latest Reuters/Ipsos poll, conducted between March 20-23 among 1,272 U.S. adults, shows just 36 percent of Americans approve of the president’s job performance, down from 40 percent last week. The poll had a 3 percent margin of error.
The poll also shows growing opposition to Trump’s war on Iran, which has seen oil and gas prices soar for an electorate already squeezed by affordability concerns.
According to the survey, just 35 percent of Americans approve of the U.S. strikes, down from 37 percent last week, while 61 percent now disapprove.
One in four also said the conflict will make the United States less safe in the long run, compared with only 26 percent who believe it will make the country safer.
That is a warning sign for Trump and his party ahead of the 2026 midterms, where cost of living and affordability will be key issues at the ballot box, even as Trump continues to dismiss affordability as a Democratic “hoax.”
In a recent NBC News poll, 48 percent of voters cited inflation and cost of living as the most important issues facing the country, far outweighing any other issue.
But polling shows Trump is not doing well on those issues.
The NBC News poll showed that 62 percent of voters disapprove of Trump’s handling of inflation and the cost of living.
Meanwhile, the Reuters/Ipsos poll showed that just 29 percent approve of his handling of economic policy, the worst rating of either of his presidencies and lower than any economic approval rating recorded by former President Joe Biden. On the cost of living, Trump fares even worse, with just 25 percent approving of his performance.
The broader economic mood is bleak as well. The poll found that 63 percent of Americans now view the U.S. economy as either “somewhat weak” or “very weak,” including 40 percent of Republicans, 66 percent of independents, and 84 percent of Democrats.
The bleak numbers follow a recent Gallup poll showing that, for the first time since it began tracking U.S. workers’ life satisfaction, more workers say they are struggling (49 percent) than thriving (46 percent).
It comes as the national average for a gallon of gasoline has climbed over a dollar in just a month, rising from $2.94 to $3.95 as of Sunday, while the administration’s confrontational stance sent oil above $115 a barrel last week.
Still, officials have sought to downplay the impact of the war on prices.
Vice President JD Vance said in Auburn Hills, Michigan, last Wednesday: “Look, gas prices are up. We know they’re up and we know people are hurting because of it. We’re doing everything we can to ensure that they stay lower.” He added the spike was “a temporary blip” and insisted, “Frankly, they’re not even as high as they were in certain parts of the Biden administration.”
But it is not all bad news for Trump. Trump’s standing inside the Republican Party remains relatively solid. Only about one in five Republicans said they disapprove of his overall performance, a figure largely unchanged from the previous week.
That is largely in line with other polls, which have shown his approval standing firm with Republicans, despite concerns about the economy and the war in Iran from the wider electorate.
Analysis from CNN pollster Harry Enten this week showed that Trump’s support among MAGA Republicans remains at 100 percent.
But cracks are beginning to show: the share of Republicans who disapprove of Trump’s handling of the cost of living in the Reuters/Ipsos poll rose to 34 percent, up from 27 percent.
The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment.
