Trump’s Approval Rating Hits 50% Milestone, Best in Nearly Three Months
President Donald Trump walks of Marine One on the South Lawn at the White House in Washington, D.C. on Monday, March 9, 2020. Trump is returning from a weekend trip to Florida and Atlanta where he visited the CDC. Photo by Tasos Katopodis/UPI
President Donald Trump received a boost in his job approval ratings on Monday, according to a new InsiderAdvantage survey of likely voters showing his standing at 50%, his strongest reading in nearly three months.
The poll asked respondents, “What is your opinion of the job performance of President Donald Trump?” and recorded 50% approval, with 50% disapproval. This represents Trump’s best approval rating in the InsiderAdvantage series since late September, when it registered 52% approval. The survey also produced a 9-point net approval, the widest positive spread for Trump in the firm’s polling since mid-August, when it measured a 10-point edge of 54% approval to 44% disapproval.
Pollster Matt Towery, who led the survey, attributed the shift to recent events including Trump’s Dec. 17 address to the nation and updated inflation data. “After months of Trump hovering at or above 50% approval, our November survey showed a dip to 44%. But in recent days, his approval has moved back into the 50% range,” Towery said.
Trump’s White House speech came amid ongoing concerns about economic performance, with inflation and cost-of-living issues persisting as voter priorities. The address, delivered during prime-time from the White House, was widely interpreted as an effort to reset his domestic messaging after weeks of challenging polling results.
The latest inflation report cited by Towery was released Dec. 18 by the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics, showing a 2.6% increase in the Chained Consumer Price Index over the past year while noting some recent-month indexes remain subject to revision.
Towery noted that gains across independent voters, younger demographics, and women drove the improvement but cautioned that a significant portion of respondents—particularly independents—remained undecided, hinting at potential volatility ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. He added, “Interestingly, our recent job performance surveys have shown an unusually high number of undecided respondents. This suggests some voters remain unsure about his accomplishments so far.”
The survey of 800 likely voters was conducted Dec. 19 to Dec. 20 via cellphone calls and text messages, with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.
