Five weeks before the midterm elections, President Donald Trump’s job approval rating has tied its lowest level in Quinnipiac University polling, while voters give Democrats an edge over Republicans on control of the U.S. House and on several major issues, according to data released on Tuesday.
Some 34% of registered voters approve of the way Trump is handling his job as president, while 61% disapprove, according to the Quinnipiac University poll. Those figures match the president’s January 2021 ratings, which were his previous high in disapproval and low in approval in the university’s polling.
Voters also disapprove of Trump’s handling of the economy, 65% to 31%; Iran, 66% to 28%; foreign policy, 62% to 34%; artificial intelligence, 58% to 25%; and China, 53% to 34%. His 31% approval rating on the economy is the lowest Quinnipiac has recorded during either of his terms, while his 28% approval on Iran ties his previous low.
Voters favored Democratic control of the House, 51% to 39%, when asked which party they would want to control the chamber if the election were held that day. Among independents, Democrats led 54% to 30%.
“As Trump’s popularity sinks and continues to sink, it is inevitable, as it would be with any president, that it would pull down other people in his party,” Quinnipiac Polling Analyst Tim Malloy told JNS. “Those are bad numbers with five weeks before Election Day.”
Neither party received strong marks for its performance in Congress. Some 26% of voters approved of the job Republicans in Congress are doing, while 67% disapproved. Democrats received a 22% approval rating, with 69% disapproving.
Still, voters said Democrats would do a better job than Republicans handling the cost of living, 49% to 36%; the economy, 48% to 42%; health care, 55% to 31%; artificial intelligence, 42% to 29%; international conflicts, 48% to 40%; government corruption, 45% to 33%; and immigration, 47% to 44%.
“A warning light flashing red for the GOP scrambling to stay in power,” Malloy said. “From the economy to international conflicts to AI, independent voters are siding with Democrats, even though a vast majority of them disapprove of the job Democrats are currently doing in Congress.”
The Quinnipiac poll surveyed 1,032 self-identified registered voters nationwide from Sept. 24-27. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.8 percentage points.
