President Donald Trump’s public standing has hit a fresh low point in his second administration, with voter approval sliding down to 37%, according to the latest national survey conducted by the Marquette University Law School. The findings underscore renewed headwinds for the White House following a temporary pause in declining numbers earlier in the week.
The comprehensive survey, made public on Tuesday, Sept. 15, indicates that public approval of the president's job performance has dropped by three percentage points since Marquette’s previous edition in July. The 37% mark represents the lowest evaluation recorded by the university since Trump took office for his second term in early 2025, eclipsing the previous low of 38% logged in June.
Conducted between Sept. 2 and Sept. 9, the Marquette University Law School poll surveyed 1,023 American adults and carries a margin of error of plus or minus 3.3 percentage points. Beyond the headline figures, the data highlights an ongoing and steep erosion in the president's core base of loyal backing across the country.
At the onset of Trump’s second term in early 2025, nearly three in ten Americans—29%—indicated that they strongly approved of his executive performance. In the newest findings, however, the share of voters expressing strong approval has been cut nearly in half, shrinking to just 15%.
The weakening presidential approval numbers have generated considerable momentum for congressional Democrats as both major parties prepare for the high-stakes November midterm elections. The Marquette survey reveals that the political climate is increasingly favoring the Democratic Party in its bid to secure majorities in both the House of Representatives and the Senate.
When measured on a generic congressional ballot, Democratic candidates have established a 13-percentage-point lead over Republicans among likely voters. This represents a significant seven-point expansion from July, when Democrats held a comparatively modest six-point advantage in the same category.
A similar dynamic was observed among the broader electorate of registered voters, where Democrats currently maintain a 12-point advantage over their Republican counterparts. This marks a dramatic shift from the July Marquette poll, in which Democrats led by a narrow margin of just two percentage points among registered participants.
The widening deficit reflects a double challenge for the Republican Party, as growing Democratic enthusiasm has coincided with diminishing support for GOP candidates. Backing for Republican contenders on the generic congressional ballot declined by four percentage points relative to the measurements taken in mid-summer.
Voter discontent is visibly spreading across a broad spectrum of governance. The Marquette survey documented drops in Trump’s standing across eight distinct issue categories: immigration, border security, the economy, tariffs, foreign policy, the conflict involving Iran, consumer inflation, and retail gas prices.
The downward trend notably affected policy areas that have traditionally served as cornerstones of the president's political support. Public assessments of his handling of immigration and border security both retreated, with border security approval falling below the 50% threshold for the first time in recent tracking.
The public's view of pocketbook economic issues proved particularly unfavorable for the administration. Only 19% of respondents expressed approval of Trump’s handling of the cost of living and inflation, while a mere 20% expressed confidence in his management of fuel and gasoline prices.
The release of the Marquette data came directly after a separate, more favorable reading for the administration earlier in the week. A Reuters/Ipsos survey released on Monday, Sept. 14, showed the president's approval rating climbing by two percentage points to reach 35%.
That minor two-point increase in the Reuters/Ipsos tracking provided the White House with a brief respite after three consecutive weeks of lingering at second-term record lows within that specific poll. However, the modest improvement in personal approval failed to translate into better electoral positioning for his party on Capitol Hill.
In that same Reuters/Ipsos poll, congressional Republicans trailed generic Democratic candidates by seven percentage points. That result marked the widest generic ballot gap between the two parties recorded by Reuters/Ipsos since Trump’s return to the presidency in 2025.
Major national polling aggregates continue to reflect an administration operating firmly in negative territory across the board. As of Sept. 16, the RealClearPolitics average placed Trump's standing at 40% approval against 57.8% disapproval, the New York Times aggregate recorded a 39% to 58% split, and the Silver Bulletin average showed 38.4% approving compared to 58.5% disapproving.
With midterms approaching, the combined polling landscape highlights substantial political turbulence for the White House. Persistently elevated consumer prices, ongoing overseas tensions with Iran, and broad declines across signature issues continue to test the administration's political foundation and complicate the path ahead for congressional Republicans.
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