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Trump's Approval Rating Falls to 32% in New Poll, a Record Low for His Second Term
TL;DR — the direct answer: President Donald Trump's approval rating has fallen to 32% in the latest Economist/YouGov poll, a new low for his second term and the weakest reading in the survey since he returned to the White House. The poll, released on Thursday, 12 November, found his approval down four percentage points in a single week and below the previous second-term low of 33%, recorded in August. His net approval rating now stands at minus 30 points, a record low. A separate Reuters/Ipsos poll taken just after the midterm elections also put his approval at 32%.
What happened: The Economist/YouGov poll was conducted from 9 to 11 November among 1,685 US citizens, with a margin of error of 3 percentage points. It found 32% approve of the job Trump is doing as president, down four points from the previous week — the first time the survey has put his approval below the 33% mark recorded in August. It was also the first Economist/YouGov reading taken since the midterm elections on 3 November, in which Republicans suffered heavy losses. A Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted from 6 to 9 November among 1,705 US adults, with a margin of error of 2 percentage points, told a similar story: 32% approval, with 65% disapproving, holding at 32% for the third Reuters/Ipsos poll in a row. Trump's career low in that survey is 31%, recorded in mid-October.
Why it's trending: The numbers land at a moment of maximum political damage for the White House. The midterms on 3 November delivered a drubbing for Republicans, and these are the first national polls to measure Trump's standing in full after the results. The 32% figure is not an outlier: two separate surveys taken by different pollsters in the same week produced the same number, and a third — Navigator Research, conducted from 28 October to 8 November — put his net approval at minus 26, with 37% approving and 63% disapproving.
Background / context: Trump's standing has been sliding for weeks, driven by the issues voters say matter most to them. In the polling reported this week, his approval on tariffs stood at 36%, on the war in Iran at 33%, and on the cost of living or inflation at just 29%. The war in Iran, which the United States entered alongside Israel in February, remains unpopular — only 36% of voters back it, according to the Silver Bulletin average. Congress is in even worse shape: only 14% of voters approve of it, and a record-low 43% say their own representative deserves another term, according to Gallup.
What we know / what's unconfirmed: Confirmed: the Economist/YouGov figures — 32% approval, down four points, a new second-term low, from a survey of 1,685 US citizens conducted 9 to 11 November — and the Reuters/Ipsos figures of 32% approval and 65% disapproval from 6 to 9 November. Also confirmed: the polling averages as of 12 November, and the issue ratings on tariffs, the Iran war and the cost of living. Unconfirmed: whether the slide continues or stabilises. A single week's polls cannot show a trend, and the Economist/YouGov figure is lower than the polling averages, which blend many surveys. What the numbers do not yet answer is whether the midterm losses and the low ratings will change the administration's approach on tariffs, prices or the Iran war — the three issues where voters rate the president weakest.
What happens next: The White House now faces a lame-duck stretch of the second term with a president polling in the low 30s and a Congress where his party has just lost ground. The comparison being drawn in Washington is with Barack Obama's second midterm year: Obama averaged 42.5% approval in 2014, with a net rating of minus 10.4 points — Trump is nearly four points below that on approval and about 10 points worse on net approval. The next Economist/YouGov weekly reading will show whether the 32% figure was a post-midterm trough or the start of a lower plateau, and the administration's response on prices and tariffs will be watched closely. For Republicans, the immediate question is how a president at 32% shapes the party's positioning heading into the rest of the term.
Frequently asked questions
Q: What is Donald Trump's approval rating now?
A: 32%, according to the latest Economist/YouGov poll released on Thursday, 12 November. A separate Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted 6 to 9 November also put his approval at 32%, with 65% disapproving.
Q: Is 32% a record low for Trump?
A: It is a new low for his second term in the Economist/YouGov survey, below the previous low of 33% recorded in August. His career low across all polls is 31%, recorded by Reuters/Ipsos in mid-October.
Q: What is Trump's net approval rating?
A: Minus 30 points in the Economist/YouGov poll — a record low in that survey. Navigator Research, polling from 28 October to 8 November, put his net approval at minus 26.
Q: What issues are dragging his ratings down?
A: Pocketbook issues lead the way: his approval on the cost of living or inflation stands at 29%, on tariffs at 36%, and on the war in Iran at 33%, according to polling reported this week.
Q: How does this compare with the polling averages?
A: The averages are higher than the 32% figure but still deeply negative: RealClearPolitics put him at 38.7% approval against 59.1% disapproval, the New York Times average at 36% against 61%, and Nate Silver's Silver Bulletin at 37.6% against 59.4%.
Sources: USA Today — Trump approval rating sinks to new record low in new poll, Times Now — Trump's Post Midterm Downfall, Approval Rating Slips To 32%, Popularity Hits Record Low Of -30, and NorthJersey.com — Donald Trump approval rating: How does he compare with Barack Obama?.
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