Republicans approval – A new AP-NORC poll finds President Donald Trump’s approval on how he’s handling the economy has fallen sharply among Republicans since the start of the Iran war, while gas prices near $4.55 a gallon underscore pressure on household budgets.
President Donald Trump stepped up to praise Cuba’s former leader, Raúl Castro, after his indictment—then immediately drew a line under the kind of action he says he won’t take.
“There won’t be escalation” with Cuba, Trump said, while the U.S. continues to fight a widening war with Iran. Back home, though, the mood among his own political base is shifting. A new AP-NORC poll released Wednesday. May 20. shows Republicans have grown increasingly weary of Trump’s handling of the economy in recent months.
The poll found that about 63% of Republicans approve of Trump’s handling of the economy. That figure is a sharp slide from an earlier AP-NORC poll conducted before the start of the Iran war, when 78% of Republicans approved.
The numbers also diverge sharply from how Trump is viewed nationwide. According to the poll, only 33% of all Americans approve of Trump’s handling of the economy.
Gas prices add a visible pressure point as the political math tightens. The survey comes as the average price of a gallon of gas in the United States reached $4.55 on Wednesday. A month earlier, on April 20, the AAA Auto Club reported the national average stood at $4.04.
The latest survey doesn’t just show economic worry inside Trump’s base—it also underlines political weakness outside it. The AP-NORC poll reported that 73% of Independents and 94% of Democrats said they disapprove of Trump’s approach to Iran. Overall, just 37% of Americans approve of Trump’s performance, leaving him underwater in the latest survey.
Trump’s approval rating has been net negative for roughly a year and has trended more negative in recent months, the poll’s results fit into a broader pattern of strain across party lines.
The nationwide poll was conducted between May 14 and May 18 and interviewed a total of 1,117 adults. AP-NORC said the poll’s margin of error was ±3.8 percent.
One sequence stands out from the figures already in view: among Republicans. approval on the economy falls from 78% before the Iran war to 63% after it began. even as the rest of the country remains far less approving—only 33% approve of Trump’s economy handling. That gap matters because it suggests the economic critique isn’t limited to disaffected voters; it’s also reaching the people most likely to back him when circumstances worsen.
With the U.S. still engaged in conflict involving Iran, and gasoline prices hovering near $4.55 a gallon, the poll offers a clear snapshot of where voters’ patience appears to be thinning—first in the base, then across the broader electorate.
Trump approval economy Republicans AP-NORC poll Iran war gas prices AAA $4.55 approval rating