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By Martha McHardy
US News Reporter
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One hundred days into his second term, President Donald Trump is grappling with slipping approval ratings across four major national polls, signaling growing public dissatisfaction with his leadership.
Why It Matters
Measuring a president after 100 days is a tradition that began during Franklin D. Roosevelt's first term in the 1930s and has since become a symbolic milestone that offers a snapshot of a president's early momentum, public perception, and political capital.
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What To Know
According to the latest YouGov/Yahoo poll, conducted between April 25-28 among 1,597 respondents, Trump's approval dropped from 44 percent in March to 42 percent, while disapproval rose from 50 percent to 53 percent, widening his net negative from –6 to –11. The poll had a margin of error of ±2.9 percentage points.
Emerson College also released a poll today, which showed that Trump's approval rating had dropped marginally from 47 percent to 45 percent since March, while his disapproval rating has stayed the same at 45 percent. The most recent poll was conducted between April 25-28 among 1,000 registered voters and had a margin of error of +/- 3 percentage points.
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Even Rasmussen Reports, which has historically shown stronger approval for Trump, recorded a downturn. On April 22, Trump held a positive approval margin of +3 (50 percent approve, 47 percent disapprove). By April 29, that had flipped to a –4 net rating, with 47 percent approving and 51 percent disapproving.
The new Daily Mail/J.L. Partners survey, conducted between April 23-28 among 1,006 registered voters, marked the sharpest reversal, shifting from a +8 approval margin (54 percent approve, 46 percent disapprove) on April 17 to –10 (45 percent approve, 55 percent disapprove) within just a week.
But other polls showed more promising results for Trump. The most recent YouGov/Economist poll, conducted between April 25-28 among 1,785 adults, showed that Trump's approval rating had risen slightly, from 41 percent on April 18, to 42 percent now. Disapproval dropped from 54 percent to 52 percent. The poll had a margin of error of ± 3.2 percentage points.
Meanwhile, the most recent Reuters/Ipsos poll, conducted between April 25-27 among 1,029 adults, showed no change in Trump's approval rating, which remained at 42 percent, while his disapproval rating remained at 53 percent.
Trump's approval ratings have been sinking since he introduced new "Liberation Day" tariffs, which saw the markets crash, before they rebounded days later.
That means that some polls, including the latest CNN and Fox News polls, have shown that Trump is now less popular than he was at the same point during his first term.
CNN's poll also showed that Trump has the lowest approval rating for any newly elected president at 100 days dating back to Dwight Eisenhower.
The YouGov/Yahoo poll also showed that Trump's current 100-day approval rating is tied (with his first-term number) for the lowest of any modern U.S. president.
Meanwhile, Newsweek's tracker shows that Trump's approval rating currently sits at 44 percent, while 52 percent disapprove, marking one of his lowest approval ratings so far.
This follows a series of polls that show declining support for the president, showing his approval ratings on most issues, especially the economy, sinking.
The YouGov/Yahoo poll showed that more Americans now disapprove than approve of how Trump is handling nearly every single issue. That includes government spending (by a 6-point margin); diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI (by a 9-point margin); the war between Russia and Ukraine (by a 14-point margin); and democracy (by a 15-point margin).
Trump's lowest approval ratings, however, were reserved for his handling of the economy (36 percent approve, 56 percent disapprove) and the cost of living (31 percent approve, 59 percent disapprove). Even a quarter of 2024 Trump voters (25 percent) disapprove of how he's handling the latter.
To put those numbers in perspective, Trump's average approval rating on the economy was 49 percent in the middle of 2020 — at the height of the COVID-19 crash. His average disapproval rating was 45 percent.
Both the Emerson and the Reuters Ipsos polls also showed negative results for Trump on the economy. According to Emerson College, a plurality of voters (49 percent) think Trump's economic policy is making the economy worse, while 29 percent think the administration's policies are making it better; 23 percent think it has no effect or it is too soon to tell. Overall, 37 percent approve of Trump's handling of the U.S. economy, while 49 percent disapprove. In the Reuters/Ipsos poll, approval on the economy has decreased from 37 to 36 percent, while disapproval has grown from 51 to 56 percent.
Trump has also seen his approval ratings on his immigration policy slide. Immigration had previously been one of the strongest issues for the president. In the Emerson College poll, approval of the President's handling of immigration policy decreased from 48 percent to 45 percent this month, while disapproval increased from 40 percent to 44 percent. Deportation policy approval is slightly lower: 43 percent approve and 46 percent disapprove.
The Reuters/Ipsos poll meanwhile showed that approval has remained the same at 45 percent, but disapproval has grown to 48 percent from 46 percent.
But the YouGov/Yahoo was an exception to the rule, showing Trump above water by 2 percentage points (48 percent approve, 46 percent disapprove) on immigration.
How Donald Trump's Approval Rating Compares to First Term
The RealClearPolitics tracker showed that on April 30, 2017, Trump's approval rating was 43 percent, while his disapproval rating was 52 percent, giving him a net approval rating of -9 points—making Trump marginally more popular now than at the same point in his first stint in the Oval Office.
However, other polls have shown that Trump is less popular now than he was at the same point during his first term.
How Donald Trump's Approval Rating Compares to Joe Biden's
Trump's 44-percent approval rating is lower than former President Joe Biden's at the same point in his presidency. On April 16, 2021, Biden stood at 54 percent, with a disapproval rating of 42 percent, according to RealClearPolitics.
While Trump began his second term with higher approval ratings than ever before, according to Gallup's first poll of Trump's second term, conducted between January 21 and 27, he was still less popular than any president since 1953 at the start of a term and the only one to begin with a sub-50 percent approval rating. Gallup said Biden began his first term with a 57 percent approval rating.
And according to data compiled from Gallup by The American Presidency Project, Trump ranks far below other recently elected presidents after 100 days, dating back to Eisenhower, who had an approval rating of 73 percent.
Other elected presidents enjoyed solid support from the American public just over three months into their terms: John F. Kennedy 83 percent; Richard Nixon 62 percent; Jimmy Carter 63 percent; Ronald Reagan 68 percent; George H.W. Bush 56 percent; Bill Clinton 55 percent; George W. Bush 62 percent; and Barack Obama 65 percent.
What People Are Saying
Spencer Kimball, executive director of Emerson College Polling, said: "Despite several unpopular domestic and foreign policies, President Trump still holds an entrenched base of voters who, if given the chance, say they would vote for him again. Areas of concern for the president include economic and foreign policy, with voters disapproving of his actions on tariffs and in the Russia-Ukraine war, while voters continue to be divided on immigration and deportation policy."
J.L. Partners pollster James Johnson told the Daily Mail: "Our last poll shocked DC as it showed Trump at his most popular ever after his tariffs announcement. But now, for the first time, we can say the Trump honeymoon period is over.
"The reason for the decline does not seem to be tariffs in and of themselves, but the administration's changed position on tariffs: whereas before there was a clear story and a sense Trump sticks by his guns, now voters are confused as to what the purpose was. That has led to doubt about their savings and the impact on their wallet."
CNN pollster Harry Enten said: "He has broken his own record for being the worst, the American people do not like what they are seeing at this point from Donald John Trump."
Amy Walter of the Cook Political Report told PBS: "The shine has come off. What voters are saying right now is that while 'move fast and break things' may be popular for some Silicon Valley tech executives, it's really not popular with voters when they think about the government and the economy in particular."
What Happens Next
Trump's approval rating could fluctuate in the coming weeks, depending on the outcome of key events, including critical negotiations in the Russia-Ukraine war, the evolving tariff situation and concerns about a recession.
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