President Donald Trump’s job approval rating fell to 34% in a Pew Research Center survey of 5,103 U.S. adults taken April 20 to 26, the lowest mark of his second term. The same poll found that just 38% said Trump keeps his promises, down from 43% last August and 51% shortly after his reelection in November 2024.
The numbers point to a broader cooling in public judgment. Only 44% described Trump as mentally sharp, down from 48% last August, while 64% said he stands up for what he believes in, a dip from 68% last summer. Confidence in Trump to make good decisions on economic policy also slipped to 42% from 44% in August.
The approval figure matters because it lands after months in which Pew says Americans’ assessments of Trump have declined steadily. The survey also found drops in how people rated him on personal traits and on several issue areas, even as Republicans continued to give him generally positive views on both his character and his performance. For a broader look at how his standing has shifted over time, see Trump Approval Ratings 2018 Comparison Shows Sharp Doubts on Fitness and Trump Approval Rating Slides as Democrats Gain Midterm Momentum.
The partisan split remains stark. Just 5% of Democrats and Democratic leaners approved of Trump’s job performance, while 78% of his 2024 voters did so, down from 83% in January and 95% in the early days of his second term. Pew said most interviews were completed before the April 25 shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, a reminder that the survey captured opinion before that episode could influence it.
Trump’s support is still solid inside his own coalition, but the trend line is moving the wrong way. The survey suggests the question now is not whether his base is holding, but how far his standing can slide before the broader weakness begins to reshape the politics around him.
