Americans give Trump low ratings on economy, immigration and Iran, two new polls show

The polls showed the same approval ratings, but a poll by The New York Times/Siena showed lower ratings on specific policies.

By Kevin Killough

Published: May 18, 2026 2:20pm

Two new polls show Americans are not viewing polices of the Trump administration favorably.

Both polls – one by CBS News/YouGov and another by The New York Times/Siena – found that 37% of Americans approve of President Donald Trump is handing his job as president.

The CBS News poll found that 33% of Americans approve of the way Trump is handling the economy, 27% approve of the way he's handling inflation, and 43% support his efforts on immigration. Of those polled, 34% approved of the way he's handling Iran.

The Times poll showed the same approval rating for Trump's overall handling of the job of president, but lower outcomes on specific policies. Of those polled, 41% approved of his handling of immigration, 33% approved of his handling of the economy, and 31% approved of his handling of the war in Iran.

The Times/Siena poll also found that 30% thought Trump's decision to go to war with Iran was the right one.

The Times/Siena survey was conducted among 1,507 registered voters nationwide from May 11 to 15, 2026. The margin of sampling error among registered voters is about plus or minus 2.8 percentage points.

The CBS News/YouGov survey was conducted of 2,064 adults in the U.S. between May 13-15, 2026. The margin of sampling error is approximately plus or minus 2.7 percentage points.