Donald Trump’s Approval Rating Reaches New Low Point: Poll

Donald Trump’s approval rating on immigration has reached a new low, according to polling.

Why It Matters

Immigration was the cornerstone of Trump’s 2024 campaign and an issue Trump previously polled highly on. But recent polls have shown Trump’s approval rating on immigration underwater.

A decline in approval now—especially as immigration remains a central focus—signals potential vulnerability in his messaging and may reflect shifting public attitudes or dissatisfaction with how he and his allies are handling the issue.

What To Know

The latest poll by Morning Consult, conducted May 9-11 among 2,221 registered voters, shows that on immigration, Trump’s approval rating is at its lowest level since his second term began, with 51 percent approving and 44 percent disapproving.

Support for mass deportations as a “top priority” has also dropped to just 35 percent.

It comes as some recent polls have shown more and more voters disapproving of the president’s aggressive immigration agenda, which has included mass deportations and a shift toward stricter enforcement and reduced legal immigration pathways.

A Fox News poll from last month put Trump underwater on the issue of immigration for the first time, with 47 percent approving and 48 percent disapproving. However, Trump has a positive rating for the border, where 55 percent approved of his performance.

Meanwhile, the latest AP-NORC survey, conducted between May 1 and 5 among 1,175 adults, also put Trump’s approval rating on immigration underwater, with 49 percent approving and 51 percent disapproving. However, that has ticked up slightly from April, when 46 percent approved and 53 percent disapproved.

And, according to an April poll by Atlas Intel, Trump’s net approval rating on immigration dropped to -6 points, with 52 percent rating his handling as “terrible” or “very poor” and 46 percent as “excellent” or “good.” This marks a decline from March when 51 percent viewed his immigration policies positively and 43 percent negatively.

The drop comes amid increased legal scrutiny and criticism of Trump’s deportation policies, including the controversial removal of migrants to a notorious prison in El Salvador. One high-profile case involves Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who was deported from Maryland in what the DOJ called an “administrative error.” The Trump administration labeled Garcia a member of MS-13, now designated a terrorist group, but his family and lawyers deny any connection.

Trump’s mass deportation plan involves removing millions of undocumented immigrants from the U.S. through expanded Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations and the use of the National Guard. The strategy includes reviving and intensifying policies from his first term, building large-scale detention facilities, and streamlining deportations with limited legal review.

Trump’s mass deportation plan has also seen undocumented immigrants without criminal records being targeted for deportation.

For instance, during the first 50 days of Trump’s presidency, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) carried out over 32,000 arrests, with nearly half of those arrested having no criminal record.

Additionally, a report by El País highlighted that more than 40 percent of individuals deported by mid-February 2025 had no criminal record.

Polls show limited public support for aggressive ICE enforcement targeting undocumented immigrants without criminal records. A recent Pew Research Center survey found only about one-third of Americans favor deporting all undocumented immigrants. While 51 percent support deporting at least some, nearly all back the removal of violent criminals, but support drops to single digits for deporting those married to U.S. citizens or brought to the U.S. as children.

Trump’s poor numbers on immigration are largely in line with recent polls, which have shown Trump’s approval rating underwater after he began his second term more popular than ever.

For example, in Morning Consult’s poll, Trump’s approval rating has decreased by 1 point since April, dropping to 45 percent, while 52 percent still disapprove.

And in the latest Echelon Insights poll, conducted between May 8-12 among 1,000 likely voters, Trump’s approval rating had decreased by one point in the space of a month to 46 percent. His disapproval increased by one point to 52 percent.

Meanwhile, Big Data Poll’s latest survey, conducted between May 3 and 5 among 3,128 registered voters, showed that Trump’s approval rating currently stands at 48 percent, down from 56 percent in January, while 47 percent disapprove of his handling of the presidency—up from a record low 37 percent in January.

But some polls have begun to show his approval rating ticking up. Newsweek’s tracker shows that Trump’s approval rating currently stands at 46 percent, with 50 percent disapproving.

Last week, Trump’s approval rating stood at 45 percent, while his disapproval was firmly in the 50s.

But polls mostly show that Trump’s approval rating has remained steady, while his disapproval rating has increased slightly.

The latest YouGov poll, conducted between May 6-8 among 1,143 put Trump’s approval rating at 42 percent, with 50 percent disapproving. That means his approval rating is unchanged from the previous poll, while his disapproval rating has improved by 2 points. That same occurred in the latest Quantus Insights poll, conducted between May 5-7 among 1,000 registered voters.

How Donald Trump’s Approval Rating Compares to His First Term

The RealClearPolitics tracker showed that on May 13, 2017, Trump’s approval rating was 42 percent, while his disapproval rating was 53 percent. This gave him a net approval rating of -11 points, making Trump marginally more unpopular now than at the same point in his first stint in the Oval Office.

How Donald Trump’s Approval Rating Compares to Joe Biden’s

Trump’s 46 percent approval rating is lower than that of former President Joe Biden at the same point in his presidency. On May 13, 2021, Biden stood at 54 percent, with a disapproval rating of 42 percent, according to RealClearPolitics.

While Trump began his second term with his highest approval ratings to date, according to Gallup’s first poll of Trump’s second term, conducted between January 21 and 27, he was still less popular than any president since 1953 at the start of a term and the only one to begin with a sub-50 percent approval rating. Gallup said Biden started his first term with a 57 percent approval rating.

And, according to data compiled from Gallup by The American Presidency Project, Trump ranks far below other recently elected presidents after 100 days, dating back to Eisenhower, who had an approval rating of 73 percent.

Other recently elected presidents saw higher approval ratings at the 100-day mark, including John F. Kennedy, 83 percent; Richard Nixon, 62 percent; Jimmy Carter, 63 percent; Ronald Reagan, 68 percent; George H.W. Bush, 56 percent; Bill Clinton, 55 percent; George W. Bush, 62 percent; and Barack Obama, 65 percent.

What Happens Next

Trump’s approval rating could fluctuate in the coming weeks, depending on the outcome of key events, including critical negotiations in the Russia-Ukraine war, the evolving tariff situation and concerns about a recession.