Here's Where Trump's Poll Numbers Stand Nearly One Year Into His Second Term

Benzinga·12/21/2025 20:11:23

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The approval ratings of President Donald Trump have witnessed a slight uptick as he wraps up the first year of his second term, in spite of prevailing economic concerns.

Trump’s approval ratings had plummeted to a second-term low of 41% last month amidst the record-setting government shutdown.

However, recent data from Decision Desk HQ’s poll aggregate indicates a minor rise to approximately 45%, which has been the average since he assumed office.

Despite the marginal recovery, Trump continues to grapple with challenges as he steps into 2026. Recent surveys expose some of the lowest economic approval ratings of his presidency, amidst high tariffs, escalated prices, and cost-of-living issues.

Scott Tranter, the director of data science for DDHQ, remarked on Trump’s overall approval, and told The Hill, “Roughly a year in, he’s right in the middle. He’s right where, basically, he’s been all year, which is unremarkable. It's remarkable because it's unremarkable.”

Trump kicked off the year on a positive note, following his 2024 victory and the enthusiasm surrounding the inauguration.

However, his ratings suffered a blow in the spring due to his administration’s contentious immigration crackdown and the imposition of steep tariffs on trading partners, which rattled the stock market.

Trump’s approval ratings slightly rebounded from approximately 44% in late April to 48% in June, as Americans began to adjust to the impact of the tariffs, and the immigration crackdown headlines started to recede.

However, the government shutdown in the fall introduced new economic issues, causing his approval to plummet to a second-term low of about 41%.

The end of the shutdown in mid-November appeared to give Trump a lift, with his approval rebounding to about 45% in the latest DDHQ update. Still, that remains below the level he held when he returned to the Oval Office.

As per the outlet, recent surveys, including an Emerson College Polling survey and a Reuters/Ipsos poll, placed Trump’s approval at 41% and 39% respectively, close to his lowest point this term. An early December Associated Press/NORC poll had Trump at 36% support, down from 42% in March.

Despite the economic hurdles, Trump has brushed off the issue of affordability as a Democratic “con job,” and in a recent interview with Politico, he rated the economy as “A-plus-plus-plus-plus-plus.”

However, surveys suggest that the American public feels differently.

A Harvard CAPS Harris poll conducted this month found that nearly six in 10 voters, including 21% of Republicans, believe the president is losing the fight against inflation, which, along with affordability, ranks as voters' top concern.

Separately, more than seven in 10 respondents in a Fox News poll described economic conditions as poor, and nearly six in 10 said the Trump administration is focused on the wrong priorities, reports The Hill.

Despite Trump's efforts to pin the affordability crisis on Biden, a new Quinnipiac University poll shows that 57% of respondents believe Trump bears more responsibility for the current state of the economy than his predecessor.