Trump Appoval---It Depends On Who You Ask

To hear mainstream media reporting you would believe that President Trump's approval rating has completely tanked. 

It is true that Trump's approval rating has come down from where it was in the first couple months of his second term in the RealClearPolitics.com composite average.

His net approval is now -5.2 in the RCP average.

This takes into account polls that show Trump's net approval ranging from +10 ( Insider Advantage) to -18 (Quinnipiac).

For context, Insider Advantage was considered the #2 ranked pollster in 2024. Quinnipiac was #36 according to ActiVote.net.

Source: https://www.realclearpolling.com/polls/approval/donald-trump/approval-rating
as of 8/28/25

 

In Trump's first term he was -18 at this same point.

Trump's net approval is actually better than Barack Obama's was at the same time in his second term (-6.7%).

Almost of Trump's erosion in net approval rating appears to be coming from Independents.

For example, 93% of Republican voters approve of Trump compared to just 5% who disapprove in a recent Gallup poll.. That is a net approval of +88.

In June, Trump was  +78 with Republicans.

Trump's net approval is actually higher with Republican voters now than right after he was inaugurated according to Gallup.

On the other hand, Trump is -24 with Independents in the Gallup polling and -96 with Democrats.

Source: https://news.gallup.com/poll/203198/presidential-approval-ratings-donald-trump.aspx

Republicans see Trump as doing exactly what he said he would do when he campaigned.

Many Independents and almost all Democrats seem to be surprised that Trump is doing exactly what he said he would do during the campaign.

They are used to Presidents moderating or ignoring campaign promises. They were hoping for a Trump that was closer to a mushy middle roader. They are finding out once and for all that is not in Trump's DNA. 

What is most telling in the polling is when you ask voters to make straight one on one comparisons.

Trump vs. Kamala. 

Trump is +6.

Bear in mind that Trump only beat Harris by 1.5 percentage points last November.

Trump seems to be more popular today with voters than he was when he was elected.

Trump vs. Biden.

Trump +8.

The media narrative is simply not supported by the numbers.

Trump has never been more popular with Republican voters.

He is as unpopular as ever with Democrat voters.

Independents seem to be coming to grips with the fact that Trump is governing exactly like he said he would.

Trump's approval really depends on who you ask.

However, when compared to the Democrat alternatives, Trump appears to be stronger than he has ever been with American voters.