Trump’s approval stuck at 33%; Democrats appear more fired up for midterms: Reuters/Ipsos poll

WASHINGTON - US President Donald Trump’s approval rating was stuck at the lowest level of his political career amid broad dissatisfaction over the war in Iran and the Republican’s economic stewardship, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll that concluded on Aug 31.Just 33 per cent of Americans approve of the job Trump is doing in the White House - the third straight Reuters/Ipsos poll with that share of respondents giving the president a thumbs up.Trump’s political brand looks increasingly like a potential weight on his Republican Party, which will be defending slim congressional majorities in the Nov 3 midterm elections.Democrats appear more fired up about the elections, with 46 per cent of self-identified Democrats describing themselves as “very enthusiastic” about voting in November, compared to 31 per cent of Republicans, according to the latest Reuters/Ipsos poll which surveyed 1,167 US adults nationwide.Asked which party they would vote for if the congressional elections were held today, 36 per cent of independents in the survey picked Democrats and 22 percent said Republicans.Since mid-August, Trump’s popularity has held at a level it only briefly touched early in his first presidency, and well below the 47 per cent share of Americans who approved of his performance early in his current term.His rating is lower than the low point his predecessor in office, Democrat Joe Biden hit, at 35 per cent approval, in October 2024.Like Biden, Trump has been dogged by widespread discontent over high levels of inflation.Petrol prices have surged since Trump ordered the US to start bombing Iran in February, and just 36 per cent of Americans approve of the war, the Reuters/Ipsos poll showed.The conflict has had long lulls over the period, but in recent days the two sides have traded missile strikes and since the war’s outset Iran has largely blocked a major transit point for the global oil trade.Some 71 per cent of Americans - including four in 10 Republicans - disapprove of how Trump is handling the cost of living.For the last month, registered voters in the survey have been saying the Democratic Party has better ideas for the economy than the Republican Party, the first time Democrats have led on the issue in about a decade.The four-day poll had a margin of error of 3 percentage points in either direction. REUTERS