Despite holding below 50%, President Donald Trump’s latest approval rating marks a four-month high—offering a silver lining for the White House in the latest polling data.
While many recent polls show Trump’s approval rating falling (Reuters/Ipsos has it at 33%), a new August Emerson College poll shows a slight rebound at 40%.
Trump previously had an approval rating of 39% for the months of May, June and July 2026, which was the lowest approval rating in the Emerson poll for his second presidential term.
The 45th and 47th president’s approval rating started at 49% in January 2025 and has fallen since. The slight uptick in August could signal that the bottom is in and 39% could stand as the record low for some time.
Disapproval Margins Narrow
The disapproval rating for Trump in August stood at 56%, an improvement from a disapproval rating of 57% in July. The poll recorded a 57% disapproval rating for the president last month—his highest mark yet of his second presidential term.
The economy remains the top voter issue with 37% of the vote. Following the economy were threats to democracy (16%), health care (16%) and immigration (13%)
The poll also found that 49% of voters opposed U.S. military action in Iran, with 36% approving and the rest unsure or no opinion.
While the tension in Iran has led to higher gas prices, some consumers may be adjusting to the current state of higher than normal inflation.
One factor of the economy is the stock market, which has shown strong health. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) is up 12.1% and hit record highs of $779.37 earlier this month.
Some experts have pointed to the U.S. being in a K-shaped economy where one class does well and another struggles.
The country also recently passed the $40 trillion national debt level for the first time, which comes as Trump’s presidency has added trillions of debt and increased the annual interest payments.
An approval rating on Trump based on the economy is likely to get mixed reviews and his 40% approval rating, while up from last month, is still indicative that the majority of voters don’t approve of his current handling of a number of different items.
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