Just 1 in 4 approve of Trump handling of economy: Survey

Roughly one-fourth of respondents to a recent survey approve of President Trump’s handling of the economy, with midterm early voting already underway in some states.

Just 28 percent of 2,275 respondents to the Financial Times/Focaldata poll approved of Trump’s handling of jobs and the economy. The president’s overall approval rating was 34 percent, with 59 percent of respondents disapproving of his performance.

Trump campaigned on lowering prices before voters elected him to the presidency a second time, but inflation has worsened slightly during his time in office.

Annual inflation, as measured by the consumer price index (CPI), has increased from 3 percent in January 2025 to 3.4 percent in August . The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) will release CPI data for September on Wednesday.

Inflation was down to 2.4 percent in February, but the Iran war has resulted in oil price spikes that have translated to higher energy costs stateside. Regular gas in the U.S. costs about $4.34 per gallon as of Tuesday, $1.26 higher than a year ago, according to data from AAA .

Just 2 in 10 respondents to the Financial Times/Focaldata survey approved of Trump’s handling of inflation, tied with housing for the category where he had the lowest marks.

The survey, which Focaldata conducted from Oct. 2-4, has a margin of error of 2.5 percentage points.

Price pressures are not solely concentrated in the energy sector. Beth Hammack, the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, noted Monday that the president’s tariffs and rising demand for artificial intelligence are raising prices.

“Energy has been making headlines this year, with prices rising for oil, retail gasoline, and diesel, but it isn’t the whole story,” Hammack said at the annual meeting of the National Association of Business Economics.

Persistent inflation drove the Fed to raise interest rates by a quarter point last month, with the rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee set to meet again in two weeks.

The U.S. economy also added 29,000 jobs in September, as the unemployment rate ticked up slightly to 4.2 percent, according to the BLS. Unemployment has remained within a range of 3.4 percent to 4.5 percent since October 2021.

Trump’s approval rating being underwater has coincided with Democrats having increasing odds of taking back control of both chambers of Congress next month. Decision Desk HQ , The Hill’s partner, gives Democrats a 54 percent chance to win the Senate and House.

Ahead of the midterms, the president has taken to the campaign trail in a bid to boost turnout. During a Monday rally in Ohio , he again vowed to send $5,000 dividend checks to Americans if Republicans maintain their grip on Congress.

“If the Republicans win, you will each have $5,000 in your pocket and economic success for our country, the likes of which we have never seen before,” Trump remarked.