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Trump’s approval rating hits record new low as midterms loom

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Cite

Scott, O. (2026, October 19). Trump’s approval rating hits record new low as midterms loom. The Independent. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-midterm-approval-rating-elections-b3068983.html

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The Independent · collected 2026-10-19 · by Owen Scott

Quick Summary

President Trump's approval rating has dropped to an all-time low of 33%, with 66% disapproving of his performance, according to a Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos poll conducted from October 9 to 13. This decline coincides with the upcoming midterm elections and amidst political challenges like the brief tenure of Katie Zacharia as Press Secretary and conflicts in Iran. The poll also indicates that 52% of respondents strongly disapprove of Trump's performance, marking a significant drop compared to last year. Despite this, Trump remains optimistic about Republican success in the midterms but acknowledges that voters prefer Democratic control of Congress to serve as a check on his presidency.
Written by AI on 2026-10-19, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

As of October 18, 2026, President Donald Trump's approval rating has hit a record low of 31%, according to an ABC News/Washington Post/Ipsos poll. The same poll indicates that nearly 7 in 10 Americans disapprove of his performance, marking another unprecedented dip since the beginning of the US-Israel war on Iran in February. This trend is further highlighted by a Reuters/Ipsos survey also showing Democrats leading Republicans in voter preference for generic congressional candidates by 12 points. The poll was conducted from October 9 to 13, 2026, among 2,545 U.S. adults, with an error margin of ±2 percentage points overall and ±2.2 points among registered voters. These findings come just weeks before the midterm elections, signaling a significant challenge for the Republican Party as many Americans view the country's direction negatively due to rising costs and economic impacts from ongoing conflicts.

Written for “Trump Approval Rating Hits Record Low” on 2026-10-31, grounded in this article and the 2 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Trump Approval Rating Hits Record Low
Politics · 3 article(s) covering the same event. Compare every outlet's account →

Compared with similar articles

This article reads leans left and hedges 9% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
Al Jazeera
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 2 of 6 claims Outlet record 60/100
ABC News (US)
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 2 of 86 claims Outlet record 70/100
The Sydney Morning Herald
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 0 of 48 claims Outlet record 61/100
“The articles discuss different aspects of President Trump's declining popularity and its impact on the Republican Party ahead of midterms, rather than a single specific incident.”
The Guardian
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 3 of 29 claims Outlet record 66/100
“The articles describe different aspects of public sentiment towards Trump's presidency and economy, rather than a single specific event.”
NBC News
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 3 of 55 claims Outlet record 60/100
“The articles discuss different aspects of public opinion and approval ratings towards President Trump, rather than a single specific event or incident.”
Washington Examiner
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 1 of 3 claims Outlet record 70/100
“The articles discuss similar topics but report on different polls and times with slight variations in approval ratings.”
The Guardian
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 0 of 14 claims Outlet record 66/100
“The articles describe similar but different polls conducted at different times, not the same specific occurrence.”
Al Jazeera
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 16 of 39 claims Outlet record 60/100
“While both articles discuss Trump's low approval ratings around midterms, they are written on different dates and may be reporting on slightly different polls or contexts.”
The Sydney Morning Herald
⚖️ Leans strongly left further left than this Hedges 3 of 22 claims Outlet record 61/100
“Article A discusses various issues affecting Trump's popularity and midterm election chances, while Article B specifically reports on a new poll showing his record-low approval rating.”
Washington Examiner
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 1 of 30 claims Outlet record 70/100
“The articles describe similar but distinct polls showing low approval ratings for President Trump around the same time. They do not specify that they are reporting on the exact same poll or the same specific incident.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
22
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
9%
2 of 22 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
Leans left
of the writing, not the subject · beta estimate
Publisher signals
59/100
The Independent's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
3
Politics
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-10-19 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

The Independent · 3426 article(s) · 7 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 7 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Owen Scott
81 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 “Seeing a passenger jet flying low overhead here would be quite a bad sign!
🔮 Trump has previously stated that he will accept the midterm results, under one condition.
🔮 William “Stone” Romberg, a beach hospitality manager who worked in Florida’s panhandle, was killed on Sunday as he swam out to untangle the bird from his lure after casting it near an inlet in the Panama City Beach area.
🔮 President Donald Trump has warned a federal judge that he will hold her personally responsible if anyone dies on a “highly dangerous” golf course he wants renovated.
🔮 Currently, the GOP controls both the House and the Senate, but some polls have shown that the Democratic Party could flip the balance of power in Congress.
🔮 During his show, Maher said that Trump had the “lowest approval rating of any midterm candidate ever,” poked fun at the president’s comments about Senator Jon Husted’s body and asked Leavitt what Trump could be like during the “lame-duck” phase of his presidency.
🔮 A DOGE affiliate who oversaw the firing of thousands of federal employees and ended USAID may not have had the authority to do so, according to a report.
🔮 The former press secretary was asked by Finnerty if she would ever return to Hannity’s show, after her tense interview with the Fox News host.
🔮 However, Trump wrote on Truth Social on Tuesday that his endorsement of Netanyahu turned around the latter’s campaign and may still carry him back to office. “When President Trump endorsed Bibi Netanyahu, the whole tide turned, and now, rather than a decisive defeat for a Great Prime Minister, it looks like a big come-from-behind stalemate, or even a WIN for Netanyahu,” Trump wrote, seemingly crediting the quote to a man named Irving C. Schwartz.
🔮 During his show, Maher said that Trump had the “lowest approval rating of any midterm candidate ever,” poked fun at the president’s comments about Senator Jon Husted’s body and asked Leavitt what Trump could be like during the “lame-duck” phase of his presidency.
Also by Owen Scott
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 81 articles by Owen Scott →

Topics

Congress Democrats GOP Independent Iran

Subjects

Trump PERSON · 12× Democrats NORP · 5× Congress ORG · 2× GOP ORG · 2× Iran GPE · 2× Republicans NORP · 2× Americans NORP · 1× Independent NORP · 1× Katie Zacharia PERSON · 1× White House ORG · 1×

Narrative

Despite other polling showing dissatisfaction with Trump’s handling of the presidency, the commander-in-chief has continued to boast about his party’s chances in the midterm elections and has even encouraged voters to “pretend” that he is on the ballot. “You have to pretend I’m on the ballot,” Trump said at a rally in Georgia on Friday.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-10-19
🔮 Despite Trump’s confidence in his record, the poll found that voters would rather see the next Congress controlled by the Democratic Party.
2026-10-19 · The Independent
Trump’s approval rating hits record new low as midterms loom · assertive framing

Claims (22 extracted, 2 hedged)

President Trump’s approval rating has plummeted to a record low just weeks away from the midterm elections, according to a new poll. uncertain
rating → plummet → poll
Around 66 percent of Americans disapprove of how Trump is handling his presidency, compared to just 33 per cent who approve. asserted
who → disapprove → cent
The revelation comes as the president is beset by a series of political headaches, including the brief tenure of Katie Zacharia as the White House Press Secretary and widespread anger over the war in Iran. asserted
president → come → Iran
The Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos poll, which was carried out with 2,545 adults between October 9 and October 13, found that 52 percent of those surveyed disapproved strongly of Trump’s performance. asserted
percent → carry → performance
His approval rating sits lower than at any point during his first term and hovers eight points lower than this time last year. asserted
rating → sit → time
Despite other polling showing dissatisfaction with Trump’s handling of the presidency, the commander-in-chief has continued to boast about his party’s chances in the midterm elections and has even encouraged voters to “pretend” that he is on the ballot. “You have to pretend I’m on the ballot,” Trump said at a rally in Georgia on Friday. asserted
Trump → show → Friday
“OK, the story is this: We get 49% more votes when I’m on the ballot.” asserted
I → get → ballot
Despite Trump’s confidence in his record, the poll found that voters would rather see the next Congress controlled by the Democratic Party. asserted
Congress → find → Party
Fifty-nine percent of respondents said that they wanted the Democrats to control Congress to act as a check on Trump, as opposed to just 35 percent who said that they wanted the GOP to remain in control in order to support Trump’s agenda. asserted
GOP → say → agenda
Thirty-seven percent even said that they trusted the Democrats more to handle the economy compared to 28 percent that trusted the Republicans on the same issue. asserted
that → say → issue
It’s the first time in more than a decade that the public trusts the Democrats more to deal with the economy, The Washington Post reports. asserted
Post → ’ → economy
Ahead of his win in the 2024 presidential election, Trump’s campaign focused greatly on economic concerns. asserted
campaign → focus → concerns
However, he has been widely criticized in office for launching trade wars with major U.S. partners including Canada, Europe and China through his tariff policies. asserted
he → criticize → policies
Others have criticized Trump over the war with Iran, which led to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a major oil and liquified natural gas trade route. asserted
which → criticize → Hormuz
That has been blamed, in part, for a rise in fuel prices. asserted
That → blame → prices
The Democrats are trusted more by voters on the cost-of-living, the poll found, with 38 percent favoring them while just 24 percent favored the GOP. asserted
percent → trust → GOP
Overall, 72 percent of respondents said that the country was headed in the wrong direction compared to just 26 percent who thought the opposite. asserted
who → say → opposite
Despite the grim polling figures for the Republican Party, voters also hold a negative view of the Democrats, according to a NBC News Decision Desk Poll carried out from September 28 to October 12. uncertain
voters → hold → October
The survey, which involved 19,135 adults, found that just 43 percent viewed the party favorably compared to 57 percent who felt the opposite. asserted
who → involve → opposite
Meanwhile, among Republican adults, Trump held an approval rating of 76 percent. asserted
Trump → hold → percent
Forty-seven percent of self-identified Republicans, though, said that they do not expect to receive a $5,000 payment promised by Trump should his party hold both the House of Representatives and the Senate. asserted
party → identify → Representatives
Just 28 percent of the same demographic said that they do expect to receive the money. asserted
they → say → money
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