Trump’s Poll Ratings Touch A Low

US President Donald Trump is to deliver the State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday, February 24. The address is critical because –

(a) He would be making it after a disruptive first year that produced more controversies than successes.

(b) The general elections will be held on November 3, when voters nationwide will decide all 435 House of Representatives seats, 33 Senate seats, and 36 Governorships, as well as thousands of state and local officials.

Meanwhile, an opinion poll conducted jointly by The Washington Post, ABC News, and Ipsos found that Americans were disgruntled about his performance and his tendency to exceed the authority vested in his office by the Constitution. The poll found that Trump’s approval rating stood at 60% negative and 39% positive.

The disapproval included 47 % who said that they “strongly disapproved” of him.

The last time Trump’s disapproval touched 60% was shortly after the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol.

Among registered voters, Trump’s disapproval is now 58%.

Dissatisfaction with Trump applied to specific issues also. Significant majorities said that they disapproved of the way he handled the economy, tariffs, inflation and relations with other countries.

His worst rating was on inflation. Only 32% approved of how he had dealt with inflation. On the question of his handling of the economy overall, only 41% approved.

But there is a redeeming feature in the poll for Trump - Democrats have made little headway in persuading Americans that they have a better set of ideas or policies to offer. Just like the Republicans, the Democrats are not seen to be in touch with the concerns of the average American.

Asked whether they trusted Trump or the Democrats in Congress to handle major issues, 33% favoured Trump, 31% favoured Democrats, 4% said that both were fine. But a crucial 31% said that they trusted neither. In April, Trump led by 37% to 30% on this question.

Be that as it may, Republican voters are still firmly behind Trump, as 85% of Republicans approved of Trump’s job performance. But 94% of Democrats and 69% of Independents disapproved of Trump. These findings were the same as they were in October 2025.

Trump has issued more Executive Orders in the first year of his second term than any recent President, but these efforts did not sit well with most Americans. Nearly 65% said that he had gone beyond his authority in exercising the powers he claimed he had.

Most Americans (56%) said he was not committed to protecting their rights and freedoms. More than 62% said he is using the Presidency to enrich himself, and 56% said his administration is not transparent in releasing government files on the investigation into the Jeffrey Epstein affair.

Trump’s foreign policy also drew negative reactions. After earlier threats to take over Greenland, from which he backed away, and only six weeks after the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, 54% said that they opposed his use of the military to force changes in other countries. Only 20% supported him. 26% expressed no opinion.

These findings provide a snapshot of public opinion as Trump weighs possible military action against Iran, Washington Post said in a comment.

Two issues were critical to Trump’s victory over Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 Presidential election. The first was immigration. On that, opinions are mixed at present.

Fifty percent said that they support Trump’s call to deport the estimated 14 million undocumented immigrants. But almost 58% said that he is going too far in trying to deport undocumented immigrants.That finding is consistent with other polls that have found majorities supporting some of Trump’s goals, but opposing his methods.

The immigration issue had begun to turn against Trump after what happened in Minnesota last month. About 6 in 10 said they oppose the tactics US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had used, and a majority said that they oppose expanded enforcement operations to detain and deport undocumented immigrants.

This comes after growing opposition to ICE and the Border Patrol operations in several cities, including Minneapolis, where the killing of two American citizens sparked massive demonstrations.

These have forced Trump to soften his tone and start the process of withdrawing ICE from Minnesota.

On the economy, the perception that President Joe Biden had allowed inflation to spiral out of control and that Kamala Harris did not have a plan to deal with it, had made Trump come to power. He promised that he would immediately bring down the prices of key goods.

But while there has been some progress, the war on inflation is not over, and the general issue of affordability looms ahead of the midterm elections.

Government data released last Friday showed economic growth slowed sharply at the end of 2025, weakened by tariffs and the government shutdown earlier.

Trump has begun to travel to 2026 battlegrounds States (or electorally crucial States), as he did last Thursday when he visited Georgia, with a message that things are getting better and will continue to do so as the November Congressional elections near.

But 48% to 29%, people said that the economy had gotten worse, not better, since Trump was inaugurated a year ago.

Asked whether they were themselves better or worse off financially since Trump returned to the Presidency, 22% said that they were better off, while 33% said they were worse off. 44% said that there was no change.

Trump’s tariff policies have never been popular with the public, and despite all he has done and said about them, public opinion has not budged over the past year.

In this survey, 34% said they approved of his handling of tariffs, while 64% disapproved, identical to the findings last April. His heavy tariffs on imported goods have led to rise in the domestic prices of many commonly used goods.

Last Friday, in a sharp rebuke to Trump, the US Supreme Court struck down the tariffs he had imposed, saying Trump had exceeded his authority by unilaterally imposing them.

Asked whom they trust to deal with reducing the cost of living, about a third mentioned Trump, another third said Democrats and a third said they trusted neither. On immigration, Trump continued to have a slight advantage, 38% against to 34% for the Democrats.

Seventy per cent said that Trump is not honest and trustworthy. On the two personal attributes, negative perceptions about Trump have grown. The percentage saying he lacks the mental sharpness to serve effectively has increased steadily over the past three years and now stands at 56%.

On the question of his physical fitness, Americans are split almost evenly.

For Democrats, the new poll is a reminder of the challenges they face, not just in the November 2026 elections for the Congress but looking further ahead. For one, the Democrats have struggled to persuade Americans that their ideas are superior to Trump’s.

Asked whom they trust to deal with reducing the cost of living, for example, about a third of Americans said Trump, a third said Democrats and a third said neither. On immigration, Trump continues to have a slight advantage, 38% as against 34% for Democrats.

Similarly, when asked who is more connected to the concerns of people, Trump and the Democrats fared equally poorly. Americans said both were out of touch with the people at large. But Trump has shown a slight deterioration on this measure over the past year, while Democrats have shown a slight improvement.

The broad findings are a reminder of the distrust that Americans have about their elected officials, no matter what the party, The Washington Post says in its comment.