(The Center Square) – More than half of Americans disapprove of President Donald Trump’s job performance, including his handling of the economy, according to a new poll.
The Center Square Voters Voice Poll found that 55% of Americans disapprove of Trump’s overall job performance, with 45% saying they “strongly disapprove.” Separately, the poll found 58% of Americans disapprove of how Trump is handling the economy, with 46% of respondents who “strongly disapprove.”
The Center Square Voters Voice Poll, conducted by Noble Predictive Insights, surveyed 2,527 registered voters from Oct. 5-7 via opt-in online panel and text-to-web cell phone messages. The sample included 1,136 Republicans, 1,171 Democrats and 220 True Independents, who did not lean toward either major party when asked.
Ryan Bourne, chair for the Public Understanding of Economics at the Cato Institute, said the American public has associated the president’s handling of the economy with inflation since after the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Inflation is now higher than when he entered office, compounding the accumulated effects of past inflation,” Bourne told The Center Square in an emailed statement. “Through tariffs, deportations, the Iran War, big deficits and pressure on the Fed to ease monetary policy, the administration has certainly contributed to that outcome.”
Only 10% of respondents said they “somewhat disapprove” of Trump’s job performance. About 11% said they “somewhat disapprove” of his economic handling.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported energy prices rose by 20.4% over the last year as the U.S. military conflict in Iran continues. The September inflation report showed annual core inflation increased by 0.3% in September for an increase of 2.6% over the year after August saw a 2.4% increase
“Experts expect gasoline prices to decline gradually after October, but that outlook depends on easing disruptions to energy supplies,” Bourne told The Center Square. “More fundamentally, lasting affordability requires people’s incomes to grow faster than their living costs. Right now the opposite is happening.”
Dissatisfaction with Trump’s job performance and handling of the economy also extended to Republicans and respondents who voted for him in 2024. About 26% of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents disapprove of Trump’s handling of the economy, while 23% of Trump voters said the same.
“This dissatisfaction extends beyond his political opponents,” Bourne said.
About 8% of respondents who voted for Trump said they “strongly disapprove” of his job performance, while 10% “strongly disapprove” of his handling of the economy.
“Presidents have much less control over prices than campaign rhetoric suggests, of course, but Trump nevertheless invited voters to judge him against those promises, and they appear to be doing so, as evidenced by other polling that showed sharply declining net approval on his handling of inflation well before the Iran conflict,” Bourne said.
About 43% of Republican voters “strongly approve” of Trump’s job performance and 38% said the same about his handling of the economy.
Democratic voters made up the vast majority of those who did not approve of Trump’s job performance or economic capability as 87% and 86% disapprove, respectively.
Outside of Democrats, Black respondents were also most likely to disapprove of Trump’s performance. About 72% of Black voters disapprove of Trump’s overall job performance, with 60% who strongly disapprove. The same percentages held up for Trump’s handling of the economy.
With the 2026 midterm elections approaching, Republicans have appeared to distance themselves from Trump as his popularity dwindles. Independent voters, who often make up the determining factors in tight national elections, were also disappointed with Trump.
About 68% of True Independent voters disapprove of Trump’s job performance, with 52% who “strongly disapprove.” At the same time, 71% of True Independent voters disapprove of Trump’s economic handling, while 53% “strongly disapprove.”
“Incumbents always seem to suffer when voters are dissatisfied about living costs, so I expect these elections to be very tough for Republicans,” Bourne said.
The White House did not respond to The Center Square’s request for a comment on the poll.
This article was originally published by The Center Square and is republished under its open-access guidelines.