(The Hill) — President Donald Trump’s approval rating has dropped a few points since he first took office, with voters increasingly expressing concerns over the state of the economy, according to a new poll.
The Emerson College Polling survey released Tuesday, just after the 50-day mark of Trump’s second term in office, found 47% of voters approve of Trump’s job performance and 45% disapprove. That’s a drop from the 49% approval and 41% disapproval rating at the beginning of Trump’s second term.
The public’s views of the economy under Trump seem to be a drag on his overall approval rating, with a plurality of 48% saying they don’t approve of Trump’s handling of the economy, while 37% approve.
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“Despite not yet delivering on the economy in voters’ minds, Trump’s support remains strong,” said Spencer Kimball, the executive director of Emerson College Polling, in a release. “However, the true challenge will be how voters perceive their financial future. While little has shifted since the election, the initial ‘honeymoon phase’ seems to be coming to an end.”
Voters give Trump his highest ratings for his handling of immigration, with 48% approving and 40% disapproving. His weakest areas are the economy, healthcare and cryptocurrency, in which he has net approval ratings solidly underwater.
The results come as stocks have continued their decline since early this month in response to Trump’s rapid shifts on tariff policy on Canada, Mexico and China. Stocks fell even more sharply, with the Dow Jones dropping 890 points, on Monday after Trump punted on saying whether the country should expect a recession.
Trump has said a “period of transition” would occur as he enacts his tariff policies, but it is necessary for the U.S. to be treated fairly by other countries.
“It takes a little time. But I think it should be great for us,” he told Fox Business host Maria Bartiromo.
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Kimball said the poll showed voters believe tariffs will hurt economic growth, with 53% saying so. A plurality, 46%, said Trump’s policies are making the economy worse, 28% said they’re making it better and 26% said they are not having an effect or more time is needed to tell.
Overall, the country remains split on Trump, with 51% saying his second term has been more of a success and 49% saying it’s been more of a failure. Almost 40% said Trump is doing better in office than they expected, 36% said he’s doing worse and 25% said he’s doing as expected.
The poll was conducted from March 8 to 10 among 1,000 registered voters. The credibility interval, similar to margin of error, was 3 percentage points.
