A cluster of late-July and early-August surveys points to the same problem for Trump: his critics are not just numerous, they are unusually steady. The numbers matter because they land as the political calendar turns toward the fall.
A new poll shows President Donald Trump with poor approval results: by Aug. 3, the New York Times polling average put Trump at 37% approve and 59% disapprove, while a recent survey comparison from 7/24-7/26 2026 and 6/18-6/22 2026 showed Trump’s approval stuck in the 30s, including 34% approval and 61% disapproval.
The article explains the poll results and how they compare with recent surveys: the story is not one bad data point, but a summer polling pattern showing weak ratings on Trump, the economy and Iran.
The weak number is the pattern
Single polls can be noisy. This one is drawing attention because it fits a broader run of surveys that have kept Trump below 40% approval or close to it for months.
The New York Times polling tracker, which averages many surveys rather than leaning on one result, showed Trump at 37% approval and 59% disapproval on Aug. 3. The Times also noted that his approval has hovered around 38% for months, even as individual polls have ranged from roughly 30% to 40%.
That matters because the political meaning changes when the number repeats. A lone weak poll can be dismissed as an outlier. A cluster of similar findings becomes harder for allies or opponents to explain away.
The late-July polling table in the Times tracker showed the same basic shape across pollsters: more disapproval than approval, often by double digits. Reuters/Ipsos, TIPP Insights, AP-NORC, Quinnipiac, CNN/SSRS, YouGov and others all reported negative net approval in their latest entries.
What the latest surveys show
The Aug. 3 Times average had Trump underwater by 22 points, with 37% approving and 59% disapproving. That is a stark measure for a president trying to hold a governing coalition together while defending his handling of the economy and foreign policy.
Among recent individual polls listed by the Times, an Ipsos survey conducted July 29 to Aug. 3 for Reuters found 35% approval and 63% disapproval. A TIPP Insights survey conducted July 28 to Aug. 1 for Issues & Insights put him at 38% approval and 52% disapproval.
Other late-July polls were similarly rough. AP-NORC, conducted July 23 to 27, found 33% approval and 66% disapproval. Quinnipiac, over the same July 23 to 27 window, found 32% approval and 58% disapproval. CNN/SSRS, also in that late-July period, found 34% approval and 66% disapproval.
The 34% approval and 61% disapproval figures highlighted in the current poll coverage are especially damaging because they sit in the same zone as the broader average: approval in the 30s and disapproval near or above 60%.
Why under 40 hurts politically
Approval ratings are not election results. They do not predict every race, and they can move quickly if conditions change. But they are one of the simplest ways to measure whether a president is expanding support or mostly talking to people who already approve.
For Trump, the problem is the ceiling. The Times average suggests he has been unable to climb much above the high 30s for an extended stretch. That leaves little margin if a crisis, economic shock or intraparty fight further weakens his standing.
The number is also important for congressional Republicans. When a president is popular, members of his party can attach themselves to his agenda. When he is stuck in the 30s, candidates in competitive districts have to decide whether to run toward him, run away from him or attempt an awkward middle path.
Democrats, meanwhile, still have to convert dissatisfaction into votes. Anti-Trump sentiment is a political asset only if it is paired with candidates, turnout and an argument voters find credible on their own concerns.
Economy and Iran add pressure
The Washington Post-Ipsos poll published July 16 helps explain why the approval number has been so stubborn. It found Americans giving Trump broadly negative reviews on key issues, with many saying they remain strained by the cost of living.
That is a particularly dangerous weakness for any president. Voters often judge administrations less by abstract ideology than by prices, wages, bills and whether daily life feels easier. If people believe costs remain high, strong messaging rarely fixes the problem by itself.
Foreign policy has also become part of the polling picture. The Times tracker noted that a recent Quinnipiac University poll found 60% of voters opposed military action against Iran, a slight increase since May. A CNN/SSRS poll found 74% of Americans, including about 43% of Republicans, said the war in Iran had not been worth the financial burden or American casualties.
Those numbers do not mean every respondent rejects Trump’s entire foreign policy. They do suggest that Iran is not functioning as an obvious political strength for him in the current polling environment.
Averages beat cherry-picked polls
Trump and his supporters can point to friendlier pieces of the data. The Times table included an RMG Research survey conducted July 27 to 29 that put approval at 43% and disapproval at 55%. That is still negative, but it is higher than several other polls.
This is why averages matter. Different pollsters use different methods, ask questions in different ways and survey different populations. Some measure adults, some registered voters, and some likely voters. Timing also matters, especially when news about the economy, war or legal fights shifts quickly.
The range does not erase the trend. Even when the individual numbers vary, the recent surveys cited in the Times tracker mostly point in the same direction: Trump is below water, disapproval is elevated, and approval is often stuck in the 30s.
That is the strongest fair reading of the data. The polls do not prove Trump is politically doomed. They do show that the burden of persuasion is on him and his party, not on critics arguing that he is unpopular.
What remains unclear
The biggest unknown is whether these numbers are a floor or a warning sign. Trump has a durable base that has often stayed with him through controversies, indictments, impeachment fights and election losses. Low approval does not automatically mean collapse.
At the same time, a base is not the same as a majority. If disapproval stays near 60%, the White House faces a narrow path to persuade independents and soft partisans that conditions are improving.
Another open question is whether any issue can change the trajectory. A clear improvement in prices, a diplomatic breakthrough, or a less chaotic news cycle could soften some of the disapproval. A worsening economy or deeper Iran backlash could push the numbers in the other direction.
For now, the takeaway is straightforward: the new poll is not just embarrassing for Trump because the top-line number is low. It is damaging because it lands inside a wider polling pattern that has kept his approval in the 30s and his disapproval far higher for much of July 2026 into early August.
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