President Donald Trump's overall approval rating has hit a record personal low of 33% amid widespread voter frustration over economic affordability, according to an October 2026 ABC News/Washington Post/Ipsos poll. With 71% of Americans rating gasoline as unaffordable and 75% viewing the economy negatively, likely voters favor Democratic House candidates by an eight-point margin, 52% to 44%, heading into the midterms.
Donald Trump's approval ratings
- ▪President Donald Trump's overall approval rating among U.S. adults fell to a record personal low of 33%, with 66% disapproving and 52% strongly disapproving, according to an October 2026 ABC News/Washington Post/Ipsos poll
- ▪President Donald Trump's approval rating among Republicans dropped to 79%, down from 88% near the beginning of his second term, with a record-low 39% strongly approving
- ▪President Donald Trump received his lowest issue approval rating on handling the cost of living in the U.S., with 21% of Americans approving and 77% disapproving
- ▪Among independent voters, President Donald Trump's approval rating reached a record low of 22%, while a record-high 76% disapprove and 58% strongly disapprove
Public ratings of the economy and affordability
- ▪In the October 2026 ABC/Post/Ipsos poll, 71% of Americans rated gasoline as unaffordable, up from 28% in February 2026, after national average gas prices topped $4 a gallon for 158 days in 2026
- ▪Overall, 75% of Americans rated the U.S. economy negatively, with 48% reporting they are not as well off as when President Donald Trump became president
- ▪Majorities of Americans rated several core household spending categories as unaffordable, including healthcare (65%), going out to dinner (61%), groceries (60%), home energy and utilities (57%), and rent or mortgage (50%)
Preferences for congressional control and key issues
- ▪Likely voters supported Democratic candidates over Republicans in congressional district elections by an 8-percentage-point margin, 52% to 44%, in an October 2026 ABC/Post/Ipsos poll
- ▪Americans trusted Democrats over Republicans on 10 of 12 issues measured in October 2026, including a 23-point lead on healthcare, 14-point leads on education, cost of living, and inflation, and a 9-point lead on the economy
- ▪By a 59% to 35% margin, Americans preferred that the next Congress be controlled by Democrats to act as a check on President Donald Trump rather than by Republicans to support his agenda
Democratic support among key voter subgroups
- ▪Among the half of likely voters who strongly disapproved of President Donald Trump, about 9 in 10 planned to vote for the Democratic congressional candidate in their district
- ▪Independent likely voters favored Democratic congressional candidates over Republicans by a 21-percentage-point margin, 56% to 35%, in October 2026
- ▪Voters who held unfavorable views of both major parties, representing roughly two in ten voters, supported Democratic candidates over Republicans on the generic House ballot by 26 percentage points, 58% to 32%
- ▪Likely voters who rated the nation's economy poorly supported Democratic congressional candidates over Republicans on the 2026 generic House ballot by a 72-point margin
Democratic voter engagement ahead of midterms
- ▪Democratic voters showed higher engagement than Republicans ahead of the 2026 midterms, with 72% of Democrats absolutely certain to vote compared to 65% of Republicans
- ▪A higher proportion of Democratic voters reported following the 2026 midterm elections extremely or very closely compared to Republican voters, 44% to 31%
Kansas Senate race
- ▪In Kansas, Methodist minister and Democratic candidate Adam Hamilton polled ahead of incumbent Republican Senator Roger Marshall in a deep-red state Senate race
- ▪Democratic challenger Adam Hamilton and Republican Senator Roger Marshall participated in a debate in Hutchinson, Kansas, in September 2026
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