U.S. President Donald Trump makes remarks as he hosts NCAA champion athletes during a NCAA Collegiate National Champions Day event in the State Dining Room at the White House on April 21, 2026 in Washington, DC.
Alex Wong | Getty Images
President Donald Trump’s overall — and economic — approval ratings plunged in the latest CNBC All-America Economic Survey in what appears to be direct fallout from widespread dissatisfaction with the war with Iran, high gasoline prices and negative views of the economy.
The survey of 1,000 people nationwide found that 40% approve of the president’s job performance, a five-point drop from last quarter, and 58% disapprove, a six-point increase. His net approval fell 10 points to -18, the lowest ever measured over the president’s two terms. The survey, which has a margin of error of +/- 3.1%, marked the sharpest drop in the president’s net approval since Americans turned sour on his handling of the pandemic in 2020.
Net approval by Democrats and independents also hit record lows, but the decline from Republicans stood out. It dropped 17 points to the lowest level since 2017, paced by a 9-point increase in disapproval and an 8-point drop in approval to 82%. While MAGA voters are sticking with the president, registering 96% approval, non-MAGA Republican support declined by 19 points to 60%.
Micah Roberts, partner at Public Opinion Strategies, the Republican pollster for the survey, said the numbers were not especially troubling to him. Amid the war, higher inflation and surging gas prices, a five-point drop in approval he said is not that big a move.
“To have a five-point drop is not the way you want to go but … he’s keeping 60% of the Republican party very, very fired up and very much on his side,” Roberts said of the MAGA contingent of the Republican party. “This is a very fraught time, a lot of big stuff is happening but the number shift didn’t seem correspondingly big on (Trump’s) core ratings.”
Roberts called the Iran war an “administration-defining” event for which the President will forever be remembered.
Economic rating dives
On the economy, President Trump’s approval took a sharp turn downward with a 39%/60% approval/disapproval, compared to 43% to 54% in the prior quarter. The -21 net margin represents a 10-point drop to the lowest net approval on the economy for any CNBC poll during either of President Trump’s terms. By comparison, however, President Biden in the CNBC survey was at -22 when he left office in 2024, and had been lower.
President Trump saw significant deterioration in his economic approval from important constituencies. Approval of independents and Latinos each fell by 9 points and it dropped by 7 points for white Americans who don’t have a college degree. Republican support on the economy declined by 8 points, though it remains high at 77%.
Most of that decline occurred among non-Maga Republicans, whose approval fell to 55% from 69% in the prior quarter. MAGA support came in at 92%, down just 3 points. So, while some high-profile MAGA supporters look to have disagreements with the president over the Iran war, the survey suggests still-strong support among his core constituency on the economy.
The most worrisome potential development for the President and Republicans for the mid-terms is the sharp decline in both economic and overall presidential approval in GOP-held congressional districts. Overall approval declined by 11 points in those districts to 43%.
Jay Campbell, a partner at Hart Research, the Democratic pollster for the survey, said he believed it would be difficult for the president’s numbers to bounce back in time to help Republicans for the mid-terms.
“It’s hard to imagine a set of policies that could be proposed and implemented between now and election day that would have a material enough impact on the American people that they would say, ‘Actually this guy is doing pretty good with the economy,’ ” Campbell said.
Americans prefer Democratic control of Congress by a 4-point margin, unchanged from the prior survey, and attitudes towards the Democratic party remain depressed with 52% reporting a negative view compared with 26% who are positive. The percentage is heavily influenced by negative views Democrats have of their own party after losing the last election. While Democrats will likely vote Democratic, it does give pause to the idea that the president’s woes will translate automatically into overwhelming Democratic gains.
“Democrats can’t assume that the worse Trump does, the better they will do or that they can simply tie everything around his and the Republican Congress’ neck,” Campbell said.
Republicans fare just a bit better in the public’s eye, with 35% having a positive view and 52% having a negative view, propelled by 76% Republican approval of their own party. The current survey marks the fourth straight poll where Republicans had a better public image than Democrats.
Iran war view
When it comes to the Iran war, Americans by a wide margin disapprove of President Trump’s handling of the military action. A 48% plurality of Americans say they feel “less safe” because of the war in Iran, with 30% feeling more safe. The public splits along party lines on the question, with 78% of Democrats feeling less safe compared to 60% of Republicans feeling more safe. But independents are closer to Democrats with 58% saying they feel less safe. A bit more than one in five Americans had no opinion or said it had no impact, leaving potential for more or less support depending on the war’s outcome.
At this point, majorities of Americans say the war with Iran is not worth it when asked about the financial cost, the increase in the price of gasoline, regime change in Iran and the number of casualties. For example, 64% of the public said the Iran war is not worth it when factoring in the overall financial cost to the nation or the increase in gasoline prices.
Key parts of the constituency that elected the president in 2024, including Latinos, young men and independents are deeply negative on the Iran war, while white non-college voters are split. But by a 53% to 44% margin, Americans say the war is worthwhile to disrupt Iran’s efforts to develop nuclear weapons.
Majorities of Americans say they have cut back on spending on non-essentials and plan to travel less in response to higher gas prices. Overall, nearly 80% have taken some action because of pain at the pump, including using their credit cards more and even spending less on essentials.
Majorities also disapprove of Trump’s handling of inflation and tariffs, with both numbers worsening from the prior survey. His efforts to deport illegal immigrants is modestly negative, while securing the southern border is supported by a 51% to 46% majority, the only issue with positive approval among those asked.
