President Donald Trump’s approval rating has sunk to 32 percent in a new University of Massachusetts Amherst poll, marking his lowest point of his second term as the ongoing Iran war and economic pressures continue to erode public support. The poll, conducted August 21-26 and released August 31, surveyed 1,000 respondents and found that 64 percent now disapprove of his job performance, with broad disapproval extending across multiple voter groups.
The Iran war emerges as a central driver of Trump’s declining support. More than two-thirds of Americans—68 percent—disapprove of how Trump is handling the conflict, and nearly 80 percent say the war has increased the cost of food and gas. According to Raymond La Raja, professor of political science at UMass Amherst and co-director of the poll, “Americans are overwhelmingly negative about Trump on the Iran situation. Only 1 in 4 Americans thinks he is handling Iran well.”
The erosion of support is particularly pronounced among Republicans. Since April 2025, Trump’s approval among Republicans has declined 14 percentage points, falling from 89 percent to 75 percent. His approval among 2024 Trump voters has dropped 10 percentage points, and among conservatives it has fallen 9 percentage points. La Raja noted that support splits sharply within the Republican base: among Republicans who strongly identify as MAGA, 87 percent approve of Trump’s Iran handling, but that figure drops to 58 percent among “somewhat MAGA” Republicans and just 30 percent among those who say they are “not MAGA at all.”
Trump voter confidence in their 2024 choice has also wavered significantly. Just over one-fifth of Trump voters—21 percent—now express second thoughts about their vote, and 16 percent say they would change their 2024 vote if given the opportunity. When asked whether Trump’s performance has met expectations, 57 percent of all respondents said he has performed worse than expected, including 28 percent of Republicans and 29 of Trump voters.
The poll reflects broader economic anxieties that extend across party lines. Eighty-eight percent of Democrats, 77 percent of independents, and 75 percent of Republicans say the war has increased gas and grocery costs. Even 69 percent of the most committed MAGA Republicans agree on this point. Jesse Rhodes, professor of political science at UMass Amherst and co-director of the poll, stated that “a majority of Americans believe that the war has imposed serious costs on the U.S., including increased inflation (80%) and a reduced ability to respond to other conflicts around the world (55%).”
With the midterm elections just two months away, Trump’s record-low approval poses a significant challenge for Republican candidates. Alexander Theodoridis, associate professor of political science and co-director of the UMass Poll, observed that Trump’s already-limited approval among independents “has fallen substantially and even his approval among Republicans, especially of the non-MAGA ilk, has declined appreciably.” The poll also found that Trump’s approval on immigration—once his strongest issue—has fallen to 37 percent, with 59 percent saying he is not handling immigration well.
The decline in Trump’s numbers represents a continuation of a downward trend. The poll found Trump’s overall approval down one percentage point since the UMass Amherst poll conducted in March 2026, when he stood at 33 percent approval. Tatishe Nteta, provost professor of political science at UMass Amherst and director of the poll, noted that “with no end in sight to the ongoing war in Iran, the continued rise in the price of gas, groceries, utilities, and housing, an escalating trade war with Canada, and the likelihood of higher interest rates, it comes as no surprise that Trump’s approval rating remains at a paltry 32 percent.”
Sources
- University of Massachusetts Amherst — the official poll report with approval ratings, Iran war disapproval figures, Republican approval declines, and Trump voter regret data
- Forbes — confirmation of the 14-point Republican approval decline since April 2025
- Al Jazeera — reporting on the broader context of declining support for the Iran war
