Trump Approval Falls to 33 Percent Ahead of Midterms

Republican efforts to retain congressional seats face a growing political challenge as President Donald Trump's approval rating falls to 33 percent, according to a Washington Post ABC News Ipsos poll discussed by NPR's Tamara Keith and Cook Political Report editor Carrie Dann on PBS on October 19, 2026. The poll also gives Democrats an eight-point advantage ahead of the November 3 midterm elections. Keith said Trump's campaign appearances have not matched his earlier commitment to support Republican candidates in competitive districts.

The president's declining popularity among some Republican voters presents an additional challenge as the electoral map expands to include races previously considered less competitive. In September, Trump held a dinner at the Rose Garden with about 30 Republicans running in competitive races and promised to visit 35 districts to support their campaigns. Keith's analysis of his subsequent travel found that he had visited fewer than one-third of those districts, instead appearing frequently in heavily Republican states and districts.

Keith attributed the travel pattern partly to Trump's difficulties in competitive races and his preference for rallies in areas where he enjoys strong support. She also noted that shifting electoral conditions had made additional districts competitive.

Dann highlighted a significant divide within the Republican Party in the Washington Post poll. Trump's approval rating stood at 94 percent among Republicans affiliated with the MAGA movement, while nearly half of Republicans outside that movement disapproved of his performance. That division complicates Republican efforts to mobilize voters for November without weakening enthusiasm among Trump's strongest supporters. The findings suggest that candidates must appeal to less enthusiastic Republicans while maintaining the backing of the president's core political base.

Ohio has also emerged as a major battleground in the Senate contests. According to AdImpact data cited during the PBS discussion, Ohio had the highest advertising expenditure among Senate races from September 1 through Election Day. The state's political dynamics are complicated by the status of its candidates. Jon Husted was appointed to his Senate seat rather than elected to it, while former senator Sherrod Brown remains familiar to many Ohio voters, according to the discussion.

The conversation also examined Trump's increasingly confrontational relationship with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, including a dispute over access to satellite communications used by Ukraine's military. Trump has also blamed Ukraine for rising US gas prices. Dann said voters had more directly associated higher fuel costs with the conflict involving Iran.

She cited AdImpact figures showing approximately $2 million in advertising spending related to Ukraine and Russia during the election cycle, compared with about $80 million focused on Iran and gas prices. The discussion framed the administration's handling of fuel prices as a central political issue ahead of the midterms, with Republicans facing a difficult electoral environment as voters assess the economy and the president's performance.