US President Donald Trump and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick (R) look on before Trump signed a proclamation expanding fishing rights in the Pacific islands in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on April 17, 2025.
President Donald Trump's approval rating has dropped five percentage points just three months into his second presidency. AFP

KEY POINTS

  • Trump's approval rating is down to 42% from a 47% high after his inauguration
  • Only 45% approve of his handling of the economy
  • 83% of the respondents believe Trump should abide by court rulings even if he disagrees with them
  • 59% of the surveyed said the US is beginning to lose credibility in the global stage
  • More than half believe Trump shouldn't attempt to run for presidency a third time

President Donald Trump's approval rating has plunged and his disapproval rating hasn't moved from earlier figures, a new Reuters-Ipsos poll revealed, highlighting the changing tone of American voters over the president's recent actions.

Trump has been waging a global trade war in recent weeks even with multiple warnings from economic experts that it will only hurt financial markets and American consumers.

Trump's Approval Rating Sees Multi-Point Dip

From an approval rating of 47% in the aftermath of his inauguration in January, Trump's approval rating has dropped to 42%, which is also 1 percentage point lower than his approval rating from last month's poll.

His disapproval rating remained at 53%, the same as the previous month, but is notably higher than an earlier poll at 51%.

In terms of his handling of the economy, more than half of the respondents (51%) disapproved, which is at least a percentage point lower than the previous poll.

On immigration, Trump's approval rating continues to slide and this time, there is a multi-point plunge from the previous poll's 48% to 45%.

Americans Becoming Uncomfortable With Trump's Actions

It appears more Americans are becoming uncomfortable with Trump's defiant stance over some federal court rulings.

The poll revealed that some 83% of over 4,000 respondents said the U.S. president should "obey court orders he disagrees with."

Trump has had run-ins with court orders in recent weeks, including over the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency's (DOGE) federal downsizing and the president's takeover of the Kennedy Center.

Notably, 73% of the respondents who believed in the notion were Republicans.

One of the biggest takeaways from the poll is the finding that some 59% of the respondents – a third of Republicans included – believe that the United States has started to lose credibility on the global stage.

Finally, some 53% of the respondents, a majority of them Republican supporters, said the aged president should refrain from seeking a third term.

The latest poll's results mirror similar sentiments in a mid-March NBC News poll that found American voters were starting to feel that the U.S. is no longer headed in the right direction under Trump.

In the said poll, 53% of the respondents disapproved of Trump's foreign policies and 54% of those surveyed also disapproved of his economic decisions.

Another poll last week found that more Americans trust Democrats in Congress over their GOP counterparts when it comes to handling the economy (46% to 43%).

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