Overview
- Multiple national surveys released mid‑May show converging weakness for the president, with overall approval clustered in the high‑30s and several polls recording record or near‑record lows on economic ratings.
- An AP‑NORC poll found Republican approval of Trump’s handling of the economy dropped from roughly 8 in 10 in February to about 6 in 10 in mid‑May, signaling fraying enthusiasm inside his own party.
- Independent polls from Fox News and Quinnipiac put economic approval even lower — in the low‑30s or high‑20s — and show growing disapproval on inflation and the overall economy among independents and non‑MAGA Republicans.
- Coverage and polling link rising gasoline prices — AAA averages near $4.50 per gallon — to the Iran war and show many voters blaming the conflict for higher living costs, which is shifting pocketbook voters away from Trump.
- Despite the slide on economic and foreign‑policy ratings, Trump remains influential inside the GOP, demonstrated by a successful primary challenge to Rep. Thomas Massie, but the shifts raise clear risks for Republican prospects in the midterms.