With the midterm elections less than five months away, voters are showing deep frustration about their personal finances and the broader economy.
A new Fox News poll finds that only 12% of voters say they are moving ahead financially.
Most voters describe the economy as weak, 54% say President Donald Trump’s policies favor people who have more money than they do, and overall economic sentiment remains negative.
The poll also shows that Trump’s numbers have slipped since last year.
Fifty-nine percent of voters say they feel pessimistic about the economy.
That is 4 points higher than last June, when 55% said the same.
The current mood is sharply different from June 2019, during Trump’s first term, when 57% said they felt optimistic.
Forty-four percent now say they are losing ground financially.
That is up 8 points from last year, when 36% said they were falling behind.
It is also 3 points higher than June 2024, when 41% gave that answer.
Twenty-six percent give the economy a positive rating.
That is up 3 points from last month and roughly consistent with views recorded this year.
Still, it remains below last June’s 31% positive rating.
About three-quarters of voters, 73%, continue to rate the economy negatively.
On the country’s overall direction, 37% say they are satisfied.
That figure has changed little since March.
It is down from 44% last July.
Even after that 7-point drop since last summer, satisfaction remains higher now than it was during most of former President Joe Biden’s term.
Those views closely track Trump’s job rating.
His approval stands at 39%, unchanged from last month.
That is 7 points lower than last June, when 46% approved.
Trump’s lowest approval rating across either term was 38% in October 2017.
Twenty percent of voters say Trump’s economic policies help everyone.
A 54% majority says the policies benefit people who have more money than they do.
Another 15% say the policies help “no one.”
The 20% who say Trump’s policies help everyone is lower than the 31% who said that about Trump in 2019.
It is also below the 27% who said that about Biden in 2023 and the 23% who said it about Obama in 2015.
Partisanship strongly shapes views of the economy.
Among Republicans, 42% say Trump’s policies benefit everyone.
Forty-nine percent of Republicans say they are financially holding steady.
Half of Republicans, 50%, rate economic conditions positively.
Two-thirds of Republicans, 66%, say they feel optimistic.
Democrats offer the opposite assessment.
Among Democrats, 81% say they are pessimistic about the economy.
Ninety-one percent rate economic conditions negatively.
More than half of Democrats, 55%, say they are falling behind financially.
Seventy-one percent say the president’s policies help people with more money.
Trump’s approval is close to record lows among several groups central to his coalition.
His approval is 43% among men, 44% among White voters, 61% among White evangelical Christians, and 81% among Republicans.
Each of those figures is one point above his all-time low with that group.
Among White men without a college degree, Trump’s approval is 50%.
That is 2 points above his lowest mark with that group.
Only 23% of voters approve of Trump’s handling of gas prices.
That result reflects rare agreement across party lines, with broad dissatisfaction among Democrats, independents, and Republicans.
Ninety-five percent of Democrats disapprove of Trump’s handling of gas prices.
So do 88% of independents and 53% of Republicans.
On the economy overall, 31% approve of Trump’s performance.
That is up from his record-low 29% in May.
One year ago, 40% approved of his handling of the economy.
A majority of Republicans approve of Trump on the economy, while most Democrats and independents disapprove.
Immigration remains Trump’s strongest issue, with 43% approval.
Even so, that is his lowest immigration rating of his second term.
Those numbers appear to be influenced at least partly by the 51% who say his immigration enforcement has gone too far.
Views have also shifted on the role local governments should play in immigration enforcement.
Currently, 53% say local governments should decide how immigration enforcement works in their communities.
Forty-six percent say cooperation with ICE should be required.
Last year, the results were reversed.
At that time, 51% supported requiring cooperation with ICE, while 45% favored local control.
Trust in the federal government has fallen to a low of 25%.
That is down from 32% in both 2025 and 2024.
The previous low was 31% in 2023.
Trust reached a high of 54% in 2002.
It has not reached 40% since 2012.
During the final year of the Biden administration, 44% of Democrats said they distrusted the government in 2024.
That rose to 73% in 2025 and 83% this year.
Among Republicans, 63% say they do not trust the government.
That is up 15 points from last summer, when 48% said the same.
It is lower than two years ago, when 85% of Republicans lacked trust in the government.
Currently, 57% of MAGA Republicans and 73% of non-MAGA Republicans say they lack confidence in Uncle Sam.
Distrust among independents has stayed relatively steady in recent years.
Eighty percent of independents say they distrust the government today.
That matches the 80% who said so in 2025 and is higher than the 72% recorded in 2024.
Six in 10 voters say the government spends too little time fighting fraud in federal programs.
Another 66% say recent anti-fraud efforts have not been effective.
Democrats and Republicans agree that the government is not doing enough to combat fraud.
Fifty-five percent of Democrats and 63% of Republicans hold that view.
They split, however, on how recent efforts have performed.
A 56% majority of Republicans say efforts to prevent fraud have been effective.
Most Democrats, 83%, say those efforts have been ineffective.
Independents are the most critical group on the issue.
Sixty-seven percent say the government is not doing enough to fight fraud.
Seventy-eight percent say the efforts already made have been ineffective.
