Nearly seven months into the war with Iran, a new Fox News national survey finds views souring as voters feel the Trump administration lacks a clear strategy for ending the war, a growing number think the conflict will make the U.S. less safe, and a majority believes the decision to take military action was wrong.
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decision → find → action
Seven in 10 voters think the Trump administration lacks a clear strategy for ending the conflict, including 95% of Democrats, 83% of independents, and 43% of Republicans.
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administration → think → Republicans
In addition, a growing 47% of voters say the conflict will make the U.S. less safe in the long run, up from 39% in April.
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U.S. → grow → April
By comparison, 32% think it will make the country safer and 20% say no difference.
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% → think → difference
Sixty percent say U.S. military action against Iran was the wrong decision, while 37% say it was right — widening the margin to 23 points, up from 17 points in June (58% to 41%).
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it → say → %
Attitudes against the war have increased modestly across most demographic groups, with the largest shifts among Hispanic voters, voters under age 30, moderates, and voters 65 and over.
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Attitudes → increase → age
"Typically, the public rallies around the president in response to a foreign policy crisis," says Republican pollster Daron Shaw, who conducts the Fox News Poll with Democrat Chris Anderson.
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who → rally → Anderson
First, President Trump hasn’t consistently and forcefully made the case for the war and the U.S. doesn’t have boots on the ground.
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U.S. → make → ground
Both of those things matter for public opinion."
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Both → matter → opinion
Trump’s overall job performance stands at 39% approve and 61% disapprove.
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% → stand → %
When asked to name the most important issue facing the country, in their own words, only 4% of voters say Iran and a miniscule 1% name foreign policy in general.
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% → ask → policy
By comparison, 34% mention the top issue of the cost of living.
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% → mention → living
Meanwhile, by a 10-point margin, more voters say the Democrats are better equipped to handle foreign policy than the Republicans — a reversal from the previous midterm cycle when Republicans were more trusted by 6 points in September 2022.
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Republicans → say → September
Israel and Ukraine
A low of 48% say they side more with the Israelis than the Palestinians (38%) in the ongoing conflict in Gaza.
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they → say → Gaza
Since 2023, the sharpest decline in support for Israel — down at least 20 points — comes from women, Hispanic voters, voters under age 45, voters with a college degree, and Democrats.
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decline → come → degree
Republican support has fallen 10 points during the same time.
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support → fall → time
On Ukraine, voters favor the U.S. continuing to provide financial aid to fight Russia by 16 points (55% to 39%), roughly unchanged during the past two years.
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U.S. → favor → years
Democrats favor supporting Ukraine while Republicans and independents are divided.
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Republicans → favor → Ukraine
One more thing…
Ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s upcoming visit to the U.S., more than twice as many voters say Trump is not tough enough on China (45%) as say he is too tough (20%).
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he → say → China
Three in 10 (30%) say his approach is about right.
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approach → say → 10
There is bipartisan agreement on this: the largest share of Democrats (44%), Republicans (47%), and independents (44%) say Trump is not tough enough on China.
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Trump → be → China
Republicans are more split, with 43% saying his approach is about right.
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approach → split → ?
Conducted September 11-14, 2026, under the direction of Beacon Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R), this Fox News survey includes interviews with a sample of 1,211 registered voters randomly selected from a national voter file.
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survey → conduct → file
Respondents spoke with live interviewers on landlines (96) and cellphones (821) or completed the survey online after receiving a text (294).
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Respondents → speak → text
Results based on the full sample have a margin of sampling error of ±3 percentage points.
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Results → base → points
In addition to sampling error, question wording and order can influence results.
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wording → influence → results
Weights are generally applied to age, race, education, and area variables to ensure the demographics are representative of the registered voter population.
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demographics → apply → population
Sources for developing weight targets include the most recent American Community Survey, Fox News Voter Analysis, and voter file data.
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Sources → develop → Survey
The Aporia
