Two polls published this week present a study in contrasts for the Trump administration, capturing a president whose core political coalition remains broadly intact even as his broader national standing erodes under the weight of rising energy costs and persistent inflation.
A Fox News poll found President Trump’s overall approval rating at 39% nationally, marking the lowest point of his second term, with economic management identified as the weakest element of his record by some margin.
Just 24% of all voters approved of Trump’s handling of inflation in the Fox News survey, a figure that reflects deepening frustration over the cost of living pressures flowing from the ongoing conflict with Iran and the disruption to global oil markets it has caused.
Republican net approval in Fox News polling has dropped 24 points from its second-term peak, though the party base remains meaningfully more supportive than the national figures indicate.
A separate poll conducted by Congress.net, which surveyed 1,142 registered Republican voters, found Trump retaining a 57% approval rating among his own party, demonstrating that the base erosion seen in broader surveys has not yet produced a fundamental collapse of Republican loyalty.
The Congress.net findings identified rising energy prices and the inflation flowing from them as the dominant concern among Republican voters, outweighing every other policy issue including immigration and foreign policy.
Brent crude has climbed above $105 per barrel in recent weeks following the disruption of oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint through which more than a third of global seaborne crude trade normally flows.
Prices at the pump have exceeded four dollars a gallon across much of the United States for the first time in over three years, a visible and politically damaging reminder of the economic consequences of the Iran conflict for ordinary voters.
The annual US inflation rate reached 3.3% in March, its highest reading since May 2024, adding further weight to the cost of living concerns that are now the defining issue for Republican-leaning households.
The gap between the 39% national approval and the 57% Republican figure illustrates both the depth of partisan sorting in American politics and the meaningful space that remains for further erosion within the GOP base if oil prices remain elevated into the summer.
