President Donald Trump’s approval rating has slipped to 40 percent, marking the lowest level of his second term, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll released Monday.
The survey, which polled 1,023 American adults, shows the country remains deeply divided over Trump’s performance. While 83 percent of Republicans continue to support him, only 3 percent of Democrats approve of his job performance. Among independents, approval has dropped to just one-third.
There was a small silver lining for Trump: approval of his handling of the economy rose to 38 percent, up from 35 percent in mid-July, and approval of his immigration policies ticked up to 43 percent from 41 percent.
However, broader discontent is evident, even among a key demographic. A CBS/YouGov poll from last week revealed Trump is losing support among men—a group that has traditionally backed him. Just 47 percent of men now approve of the job he is doing, while 53 percent disapprove. That figure is down significantly from October, just before Trump’s second electoral victory, when 54 percent of men expressed support and 64 percent viewed him as a strong leader.
Polling averages from DecisionDeskHQ show Trump’s overall approval rating has fallen by about 12 points since January, dropping from 56 percent to 44 percent. Another Gallup poll conducted last week put his approval even lower, at 37 percent.
Men surveyed in the CBS/YouGov poll cited several areas of dissatisfaction, including Trump’s focus on deportations and his failure to reduce prices. Forty-seven percent of men said Trump was focusing “too much” on deportations, and 65 percent believed he has not done enough to lower costs.
The polling data suggests that issues which initially drew many male voters to Trump are now contributing to their disapproval. If the trend continues, it could pose significant challenges for Republicans heading into the midterm elections, particularly as questions continue to swirl among Trump’s base and party leaders over his handling of the so-called “Epstein files.” Photo by Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America, Wikimedia commons.
