Fox News Poll: Donald Trump starts 2026 with 44% approval
New year, same take: Voters say the economy is in bad shape, that President Donald Trump’s policies haven’t helped, that he isn’t spending enough time on the economy, and that...
By Fox News · Fox News
New year, same take: Voters say the economy is in bad shape, that President Donald Trump’s policies haven’t helped, that he isn’t spending enough time on the economy, and that things are unlikely to get better this year. That’s according to a new Fox News survey released Wednesday. The poll finds a 54% majority thinks the country is worse off today than it was a year ago compared to 31% who say it is better off. That 23 percentage-point deficit comes from most Democrats (84%) and independents (71%) saying the U.S. is worse off — and a smaller majority of Republicans saying the country is better off (61%). On a personal level, only one quarter of voters say they are better off financially than they were a year ago, and more than 4 in 10 say the administration’s economic policies have hurt them — about twice the share who say they’ve been helped. Another 4 in 10 think the policies have had no effect. While the number who say they’ve been hurt by Trump’s policies is down 3 points since November, it’s up 22 points compared to his first term (in December 2018). FOX NEWS POLL: VOTERS SAY GO SLOW ON AI DEVELOPMENT — BUT DON’T KNOW WHO SHOULD STEER Three in 10 give the economy positive ratings, but most, 7 in 10, say it is in bad shape. This is exactly how voters rated the economy last January. To top it off, more voters think the economy will get worse this year rather than better by a 13-point margin (45% worse vs. 32% better). That contrasts with views from a year ago when they were more likely to see the economy getting better by 2 points. Part of the shift is driven by fewer Republicans feeling optimistic now (58% vs. 63% a year ago). "The president faces two difficult obstacles; the virtually unanimous and intractable opposition of Democrats and the stubbornness of high prices," says Republican pollster Daron Shaw, who helps conduct Fox News polls with Democrat Chris Anderson. "Republican officeholders think the economic benefits of the One Big Beautiful Bill will ki…