DemDaily: Polling Snapshot! Trump’s Approval Ratings
November 21, 2025
Ten months into his presidency, Donald Trump’s approval rating has dipped to a low of 38% -- as the president faces intense public dissatisfaction with the state of the economy, the stripping of Americans' healthcare subsidies under his "Big Beautiful Bill," and the government shutdown.
Trump's handling of the controversy surrounding the records of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has also sown division among his party in Congress. Every congressional Republican except one voted to release the notorious files. His flip-flopping on the investigation of the Epstein "conspiracy" continues to split his MAGA base, with many still registering a sense of betrayal over his promise of full transparency.
Most significantly, Republicans nationwide are dealing with the repercussions of Trump's erratic and dictatorial presidency, as evidenced by Democrats' sweep of victories in the 2025 elections -- a momentum they hope will propel them to winning back control of the House and Senate in the 2026 midterms.
| Accordingly to a November 14-17, 2025 Reuters/Ipsos poll of US adults, Trump’s job performance stands at 38% approval/60% disapproval -- down nine points from the beginning of the president’s second term, and below his first-term average of 41%. His next lowest rating of 39% came on April 30, at the critical 100-day mark in his administration -- the lowest 100-day job approval rating of any president in the past 80 years |
A November 15-17, 2025, Economist/YouGov weekly tracking poll of US adults, which rates Trump’s approval at 40%, breaks it down:
Job Performance
Twice as many respondents say they Strongly Disapprove (46%) of Trump's performance as Strongly Approve (23%). Of the 62% of Independents who disapprove, 49% strongly disapprove vs. 13% who strongly approve.
Political Party
Democrats: 5% approve, 95% disapprove (85% Strongly)
Republicans: 85% approve, 13% disapprove
Independents: 30% approve, 62% disapprove
Approval by Race
Whites: 48% approve, 50% disapprove
Blacks: 7% approve. 84% disapprove
Hispanics: 39% approve, 58% disapprove
Approval by Age
18-19: 25% approve, 70% disapprove
30-44: 38% approve, 58% disapprove
45-64: 48% approve, 48% disapprove
65+: 45% approve, 54% disapprove
Approval by Sex
Female: 36% approve, 59% disapprove
Male: 44% approve, 54% disapprove
Key Issues
Trump is also underwater with the public on at least five issues rated by the percentage of Americans as their top concern:
Inflation/Prices: 23%
Jobs and the Economy: 17%
Health Care: 14%
Civil Rights: 8%
Immigration: 6%
The Government Shutdown
The vast majority of Americans believe that the government shutdown was harmful to the country: 50% think it hurt the country a great deal, 29% say it was hurt somewhat, and 15% say a little.
Fewer Americans say they were personally affected by the shutdown: 9% say they were affected a great deal, 18% say somewhat, and 29% say a little.
Democrats in Congress should have held out for expanding subsidies during shutdown negotiations: 36% think they should have held out and 39% think they should not have.
| Which party won the shutdown battle? More Americans think Republicans won by a notable margin of 38% vs. 8% compared to Democrats, while 39% say neither party was the winner. This is a significant difference from Democrats' lead during the shutdown, which had them up by as much as 10% -- until Senate Democrats caved to the GOP plan. |
Epstein Investigation
According to the Economist/YouGov survey, the vast majority (80%) of Americans think that the US government should release all files from the investigation of Epstein, and about two-thirds (69%) think Trump knew some (24%) or a lot (45%) about Epstein's sex crimes before investigations began.
42% of Americans think Trump was involved in the crimes and 34% believe he wasn't. Similarly, 45% of Americans think Trump is trying to cover up Epstein's crimes, while 32% say he is not.
DemList will keep you informed.
DemList
Connecting You to The Party
Connecting You to Each Other
Kimberly Scott
Publisher
SignUp for the Daily updates on policy, politics and the players.
Follow DemList on BlueSky, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn
Help Demlist now with $15, $25 or $50 HERE!
Sources: The Economist, YouGov, Newsweek, The Hill, NYT, Politico, RCP
DemDaily is publishing on a modified schedule while our Publisher recovers from hand surgery.
