President Donald Trump’s approval concerning the economy and immigration has seen a significant decline since March, as indicated by a recent AP-NORC survey. This latest data suggests that two key policy areas that contributed to his election less than a year ago may now be posing challenges as his party prepares for the 2026 midterm elections.
TL;DR
- President Trump's approval on the economy and immigration has significantly declined since March.
- Economic approval is at 31%, the lowest registered in an AP-NORC poll.
- Approval on crime dropped from 53% to 43%, and immigration from 49% to 38%.
- Overall presidential approval is at 36%, a modest decrease from 42% in March.
Only 31% of U.S. Adults now approve of how Trump is handling the economy, the poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research finds. That is down from 40% in March and marks the lowest economic approval he’s registered in an AP-NORC poll in his first or second term. The Republican president also has struggled to recover from public blowback on other issues, such as his management of the federal government, and has not seen an approval bump even after congressional Democrats effectively capitulated to end a record-long government shutdown last month.
Potentially most concerning for Trump, whose identity has become closely tied to his political party, he's faltered on matters that were once significant advantages. Merely a few months prior, 53% of Americans approved of Trump’s handling of crime, yet this figure has dropped to 43% in the latest survey. A comparable decrease has been observed regarding immigration, moving from 49% endorsement in March down to 38% presently.
The new poll starkly illustrates how Trump has struggled to hold onto political wins since his return to office. Even border security — an issue on which his approval remains relatively high — has declined slightly in recent months.
Fortunately for Trump, his overall approval hasn’t fallen as steeply. A recent survey revealed that 36% of U.S. Citizens endorse his performance as president, a modest decrease from 42% recorded in March. This suggests that even if some individuals express dissatisfaction with aspects of his strategy, they may not yet be prepared to label his presidency as a failure. Furthermore, while a growing number of Republicans voice concerns on specific matters, their overall support for him remains substantial.
Declining approval on the economy, even among Republicans
Republicans express greater dissatisfaction with Trump's economic stewardship now compared to the initial period of his presidency. A December survey indicates that approximately 7 out of 10 Republicans, specifically 69%, endorse Trump's approach to the economy, marking a decrease from the 78% approval rate recorded in March.
Larry Reynolds, a 74-year-old retired individual and Republican supporter residing in Wadsworth, Ohio, stated his endorsement of Trump's proposal to impose import tariffs on American commerce partners, though he feels the current levels have escalated excessively, leading to a “vicious circle now where they aren’t really justifying the tariffs.”
Reynolds said he also believes that inflation became a problem during the coronavirus pandemic and that the economy won’t quickly recover, regardless of what Trump does. “I don’t think it’ll be anything really soon. I think it’s just going to take time,” he said.
A significant portion of Trump's supporters remain loyal, a situation that wasn't consistently true for his predecessor, President Joe Biden, a member of the Democratic Party. During the summer of 2022, only about half of Democrats expressed approval of Biden's economic management. A short time before he withdrew from the 2024 presidential race two years later, that figure had climbed to approximately two-thirds of Democrats.
More generally, however, there's no indication that Americans believe the economy has gotten better since Trump assumed office. Approximately two-thirds of U.S. Adults, 68%, still state that the nation's economy is “poor.” This figure remains the same as when the inquiry was last conducted in October, and it aligns closely with sentiments expressed during Biden's final year in his tenure.
Why Trump gets higher approval on border security than immigration
Trump's standing on immigration has weakened since March, yet border security continues to be a significant advantage for him. Fifty percent of American adults, or half, endorse Trump's approach to border security, a figure only marginally less than the 55% who approved in September.
Democrats and independents contribute to Trump's perceived strength regarding border security. A significant portion of independents, specifically 36%, express approval of Trump's handling of border issues, compared to 26% who approve of his approach to immigration.
Jim Rollins, an 82-year-old independent in Macon, Georgia, said he believes that when it comes to closing the border, Trump has done “a good job,” but he hopes the administration will rethink its mass deportation efforts.
“Taking people out of kindergarten, and people going home for Thanksgiving, taking them off a plane. If they are criminals, sure,” said Rollins, who said he supported Trump in his first election but not since then. “But the percentages — based on the government’s own statistics — say that they’re not criminals. They just didn’t register, and maybe they sneaked across the border, and they’ve been here for 15 years.”
Other polls have shown it’s more popular to increase border security than to deport immigrants, even those who are living in the country illegally. Nearly half of Americans said increasing security at the U.S.-Mexico border should be “a high priority” for the government in AP-NORC polling from September. Only about 3 in 10 said the same about deporting immigrants in the U.S. Illegally.
Shaniqwa Copeland, a 30-year-old independent home health aide residing in St. Augustine, Florida, stated her approval of Trump’s general performance as president, though she feels his immigration actions have gone too far is questionable, particularly concerning masked federal agents when orchestrating extensive raids.
“Now they’re just picking up anybody,” Copeland said. “They just like, pick up people, grabbing anybody. It’s crazy.”
Health care and government management remain thorns for Trump
Roughly 30% of American adults are satisfied with Trump's approach to healthcare, a minor decrease from November. The recent survey was carried out in early December, during which time Trump and Congress were struggled to find a bipartisan deal to prolong the Affordable Care Act subsidies, which are set to conclude this month.
The same health care fight also led to the recent government closure. Approximately one-third of American adults, specifically 35%, give their approval for Trump's handling of the federal administration, a decrease from 43% recorded in March.
However, some U.S. Citizens might point fingers at other individuals for the nation's difficulties, beyond Trump. Copeland expresses dissatisfaction with the nation's medical services and believes the situation is deteriorating, yet she's uncertain whether to hold Trump or Biden accountable.
“A couple years ago, I could find a dentist and it would be easy. Now, I have a different health care provider, and it’s like so hard to find a dental (plan) with them,” she said. “And the people that do take that insurance, they have so many scheduled out far, far appointments because it’s so many people on it.”
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Conducted from December 4th to the 8th, the AP-NORC survey involved 1,146 adults. It utilized a sample drawn from NORC's AmeriSpeak Panel, a probability-based system intended to reflect the U.S. Populace. For adults in general, the margin of sampling error stands at approximately 4 percentage points.
