New Poll Says Voters Are Fired Up to Vote in Upcoming Midterm Elections — And Furious with Trump and GOP

AP Photo/Evan Vucci

A new poll by Marist in partnership with NPR and PBS News says that Americans are fired up to vote in the upcoming midterm elections — and their responses show some grim numbers for President Donald Trump and the GOP across a wide range of categories.

The polling numbers for Trump and the GOP have been brutal as his second term has progressed, with his immigration crackdown cratering his support, the handling of the Epstein files getting abysmal marks, and even Americans’ views on his handling of the economy and inflation taking body blows. The president’s social media posts and public comments about the Iran war sparked new negative chatter, with reporters openly asking him about his “mental health” and critics accusing him of advocating for war crimes.

The latest NPR/PBS News/Marist Poll survey was conducted from April 27 through April 30, 2026 of 1,322 U.S. adults using live interviews by phone, by text, and online. The margin of error for the entire sample of 1,322 adults was +/- 3.1 percentage points, and the margin of error for the 1,155 registered voters in the sample was +/- 3.3 percentage points.

As numerous other recent polls have shown, Trump’s approval rating was underwater with all groups except Republicans, where 81% approve of the job he was doing as president 18% disapprove, and 1% are unsure. For all adults, 37% approve, 59% disapprove, and 4% unsure; the numbers for registered voters were nearly identical with 39% approve, 59% disapprove, and 2% unsure. That 59% disapproval figure was the highest it has ever been the entire time Marist has been tracking Trump’s approval ratings since February 2017.

Among Democrats, only 6% approve, 92% disapprove, and 1% are unsure. The president was more than 30 points underwater with Independents, with 32% approve, 63% disapprove, and 4% unsure.

Among those who voted to return Trump to office in 2024, 84% approve, 15% disapprove, and 1% were unsure.

The numbers were slightly harsher when poll respondents were asked “Do you think the United States’ role on the world stage has been strengthened or weakened by Donald Trump’s decisions as president?” For the samples of both all adults and registered voters, 38% said strengthened and 62% weakened. Among Democrats, 6% strengthened and 94% weakened; Republicans 78% strengthened and 22% weakened; and Independents 32% strengthened and 67% weakened.

The generic congressional ballot revealed a Democratic advantage in every category except Republicans and rural voters, and an overall 10-point preference for Democrats among registered voters. That is a small improvement from March, when Democrats had a nine-point advantage in Marist’s poll.

Trump got poor numbers in each category Marist surveyed; he still won over the majority of Republicans but a solid percent of his own party have soured on him.

When asked about how the president was handling Iran, 60% of Americans disapprove (up from 54% disapprove in March), 33% approve, and 7% unsure. Among Republicans, 22% disapprove (also up from March, with 15% disapprove), and 72% approve. When asked if U.S. military actions in Iran have done more harm than good or vice versa, 61% of Americans (and 25% of Republicans) say more harm than good and 48% said more good than harm.

When asked if the U.S.’s role on the world stage has been strengthened or weakened due to the president’s decisions, 62% of Americans and 22% of Republicans say weakened and 38% say strengthened.

Sixty-one percent of Americans disapprove of Trump’s handling of the economy, 35% approve, and 5% are unsure. Among Republicans, 23% disapprove, 76% approve, and 2% unsure.

Sixty-three percent of Americans do not believe the U.S. economy is working well for them, and 81% said the current price of gas is causing either a major (33%) or minor strain (48%) on their household budget (19% reported no strain).

Trump gets a lot of the blame for the increase in gas prices, with 63% of Americans (89% of Democrats, 32% of Republicans, and 63% of Independents) placing a great deal or good amount of blame on the president and 37% placing little or no blame on him.

Republicans and Democrats both expressed a high level of enthusiasm for voting in the November midterms, with 82% and 79% saying they were very enthusiastic or somewhat enthusiastic, respectively; among Independents, 63% said they were very or somewhat enthusiastic. Overall, 74% of registered voters said they were very or somewhat enthusiastic about voting.

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