Trump Faces Defections From Key Voter Groups Ahead of Midterms

Donald Trump faces growing resistance from several voter groups that helped secure his return to the White House as Americans prepare to vote in the 2026 midterm elections on Tuesday, November 3. Latino voters, evangelical Christians and supporters of the Make America Healthy Again movement are expressing dissatisfaction with his administration, raising questions about Republican electoral prospects.

The shift threatens the diverse, working-class coalition that supported Trump's America First agenda in 2024. According to an NBC News poll conducted ahead of Election Day, some voters who previously backed the president are no longer firmly aligned with his political movement.

Trump's support among Latino voters increased from 32 percent in the 2020 presidential election to 48 percent in 2024, according to polling cited by ABC News. However, a recent New York Times/Siena poll showed Democrats holding a 30-point advantage among Latino voters.

Celia Salmerón, a 56-year-old hairdresser and permanent US resident originally from El Salvador, said economic promises influenced her decision to support Trump in 2024. She now operates a small salon in a working-class Maryland neighborhood.

"He promised to give us money. But he didn't give us anything. What he gave us this time was problems," said Salmerón.

She described mounting financial difficulties since Trump's return to office, including losing her home and car and struggling with credit card payments.

"Ever since Trump came in, I have been bankrupt. I have lost everything; my house, my car. I can't pay my credit cards," Salmerón said.

Her business has also experienced declining activity. Many of her customers are undocumented immigrants, while an Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation recently resulted in a barber several shops away being violently detained.

"It's as though the devil came here to the United States to govern. Because only the devil governs that way, with cruelty and evil," she said.

Salmerón said the administration's immigration enforcement and economic policies had changed her assessment of the president.

"If I had known this man was going to behave this way, I would not have voted for him. And I regret voting for him," Salmerón said.

She gave Trump's second term a D grade, compared with a B for his first administration.

Evangelical Christians also present a complicated picture for Republicans. Although many remain supportive of Trump's political agenda, some have expressed discomfort with his public conduct and religious messaging.

Jon Edwards, a 31-year-old student minister at a born-again Baptist church outside Atlanta, Georgia, criticized an AI-generated image Trump shared in April depicting himself as Jesus Christ.

"That was a dumb thing to do … it was way out of line," Edwards said.

Trump subsequently deleted the image after facing criticism from Christians. Edwards also questioned the president's religious credibility.

"He'll stand before God one day and have to give an answer to his claims … that's between the two of them," he said.

Despite those reservations, Edwards does not regret supporting Trump in 2024. He welcomed the administration's immigration policies and efforts targeting transgender issues.

"There's a lot of the promises that he made on the trail that I'm seeing come to fruition," Edwards said.

However, his support for Republican candidates is uncertain. He is leaning toward voting for Democratic Senate candidate Jon Ossoff in Georgia, whose campaign he believes reflects his values. Edwards rated Trump's second term B+, compared with C for his first term.

Another source of dissatisfaction comes from supporters of the Make America Healthy Again movement, commonly known as MAHA. The movement gained political momentum through Robert F Kennedy Jr's promises to address food-system chemicals and change federal vaccine policies.

Tricia Busch, a mother of three from Des Moines, Iowa, supported the movement after battling cancer twice and undergoing a stem cell transplant. She said the administration had failed to deliver the health and environmental changes she expected.

"I wish I would have never voted and never wasted my time with it," Busch said.

She criticized the continued use of agricultural chemicals and the country's cancer rates, arguing that the administration had not fulfilled its promises.

"We're still having all our food getting sprayed with chemicals," Busch said.

"Meanwhile, we are still being diagnosed with cancer at astronomical rates. It's a complete failure," she added.

Busch has also described herself as a political orphan through her blog, reflecting her disappointment with the administration. Nevertheless, she plans to support Republican gubernatorial candidate Zach Lahn in Iowa's midterm election.

Beyond individual voter experiences, the election represents an important test of the political balance between the White House and Congress. In an earlier address to Republican lawmakers at Washington's Kennedy Center, Trump acknowledged the historical difficulties presidents face during midterm elections.

"They say that when you win the presidency, you lose the midterm elections. I wish you could explain to me what the hell is going through people's heads," Trump said at the beginning of the year, according to the Spanish newspaper Ara.

With Trump's name absent from the ballot, voters will determine whether Republican candidates can maintain the coalition that delivered his 2024 victory or whether growing dissatisfaction will strengthen Democratic prospects in Congress.