Tracking public opinion on key issues. Full toplines and datasets for public use can be found on the Download Data page. All trend questions, including breakouts for key subgroups, can be found on the AP’s Polling Tracker.
More adults feel pessimistic than optimistic about the country’s direction, a trend that has held for the past several years. Just 28% say the U.S. is heading in the right direction, a decline of 10-percentage points since the start of Trump’s second term.
More U.S. adults have rated the state of the economy as poor rather than good since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. This negative assessment has persisted, and even intensified, spiking during the Biden presidency and now hovering around 7 in 10. Economic pessimism appears entrenched in the post-pandemic era, with sentiment worsening rather than rebounding over time.
Approval of Trump’s handling of the economy declined to 30% in April from 38% in March. Seven in 10 U.S. adults now disapprove, representing the highest level recorded in his second term.
While support for Trump’s handling of immigration has steadily declined since the start of his second term, it remains one of his strongest issues with 40% approving and 59% disapproving in April.
About one-third of U.S. adults express approval of Trump’s handling of foreign policy, a measure that has remained remarkably steady during his second term, even as his administration has conducted foreign interventions in Venezuela and Iran and strikes against boats suspected of trafficking drugs into the U.S.
With tariffs central to Trump’s economic policy, roughly 6 in 10 U.S. adults have consistently disapproved of his handling of trade negotiations during his second term, compared with about 4 in 10 who approve, with little fluctuation.
