WASHINGTON — Americans are deeply unhappy with President Donald Trump’s record on prices: only 17% approve of his handling of the cost of living and just 26% approve of his handling of the economy overall — a new low — according to a poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research released Thursday.
Sixty-five percent of U.S. adults now say Trump’s policies are more to blame for persistently high costs than factors outside his control, a sharp contrast with October 2022, when a majority blamed forces beyond then-President Joe Biden’s control even amid pandemic-era inflation. About seven in 10 Americans say Trump’s cost-of-living performance has been “worse than expected,” including roughly half of Republicans.
Roughly half of adults say they are extremely or very concerned about affording gasoline — up from 39% in July — and about half voice the same alarm about food. Trump’s economy approval is 14 points lower than in March 2025, shortly after he returned to office. Overall job approval sits near three in 10, and about six in 10 say the country is worse off than when his second term began. Border security remains a relative bright spot, with about half approving.
Tariffs and the Iran war weigh on the numbers. Only about three in 10 approve of Trump’s trade handling, down from about four in 10 in March, and 64% say he has “gone too far” on new tariffs. Sixty-nine percent say the Iran war has not been worth fighting; only 28% approve of his Iran management. Among Republicans, about six in 10 disapprove of his cost-of-living performance, though 67% of Republicans still pin high prices more on outside factors than on his policies.
Interviewed voters in the AP story described grocery and fuel sticker shock eating disposable income — including some three-time Trump voters who hoped a second term would feel like the first. Trump has asked supporters to treat the midterms as if he were on the ballot while barnstorming deep-red states; the poll suggests cost-of-living anger could complicate that turnout pitch.
In Arizona, where water, power bills, and gas prices already dominate campaign ads, the national numbers reinforce a midterm frame both parties are using: whether voters hold the White House accountable for prices at the pump and checkout — five weeks from Election Day.
Historically, midterm electorates punish the president’s party when pocketbook ratings crater. Trump’s first term often treated the economy as a relative strength; the second-term numbers flip that script. Even Republicans who still prefer him over Democrats describe disappointment that “Make America Great Again” has not translated into cheaper groceries or gas, according to voters quoted in the AP report.
White House allies argue that ending the Iran conflict and recalibrating tariffs will eventually lower prices, and that border metrics remain a political asset. The poll suggests time is short: Election Day is Nov. 3, early voting is open in many states, and “worse than expected” is already the dominant cost-of-living verdict.
Campaign strategists in Arizona and other battlegrounds will test whether turnout machines can overcome price anger — or whether Democrats can convert national disapproval into down-ballot gains on water, power bills, and household budgets that feel local even when the drivers are global.