Story Highlights
- Trump's ratings have remained within 40% to 44% range since May
- The president continues to receive highest marks on handling the economy
- Americans give Trump poor marks for handling race relations
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- President Donald Trump's approval rating currently stands at 41%, consistent with the 40% to 44% range it has been in since May.
These data are from the latest Gallup poll, conducted Aug. 1-14, during which news coverage was largely dominated by mass shootings that occurred in Texas and Ohio on Aug. 3 and Aug. 4. In the wake of these mass shootings, Trump has been urged to take legislative action on gun control and has held bipartisan talks about various gun control measures.
Trump's latest rating is close to his average of 41.7% for 2019 so far -- an average that is a bit higher than his average ratings for 2017 (38.5%) and 2018 (40.3%).
Currently, 88% of Republicans, 37% of independents and 4% of Democrats approve of the job Trump is doing.
Americans Continue to Rate Trump Best on Handling of the Economy
The poll also asked Americans to evaluate how Trump is handling each of four issues, and he continues to receive the highest marks for his handling of the economy. Fifty-three percent of Americans approve of the job he is doing on it -- in line with the 50% to 56% approval he has received on this measure throughout 2018 and 2019.
Meanwhile, 44% approve of his performance on education, up slightly from 39% in August 2018. Forty-one percent approve of Trump's handling of foreign affairs, which is on the high end of the 33% to 43% range for this measure since he took office in 2017.
Trump's lowest mark is for his handling of race relations, which a third of Americans (34%) approve of. This is one of the lowest ratings Trump has received on any issue during his presidency. The lowest thus far was a 28% approval rating for handling healthcare in July 2017.
| Approve | Disapprove | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The economy | 53 | 46 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Education | 44 | 50 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Foreign affairs | 41 | 57 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Race relations | 34 | 64 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Gallup, Aug. 1-14, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Few Democrats, U.S. Blacks Approve of Trump's Handling of Race Relations
Most Republicans approve of Trump's handling of race relations in the U.S., but the percentage who do so -- 78% -- is 10 points lower than his overall approval rating among this group. Likewise, independents' approval of Trump on the issue is nine points lower than their overall approval of him. Very few Democrats (5%) approve of the president's handling of this issue.
Less than half of non-Hispanic whites (45%) approve of Trump's performance on race relations, but his rating is substantially lower among Hispanics (15%) and blacks (8%).
Bottom Line
Though his annual averages have improved slightly in his first 2 1/2 years in office, Trump's approval ratings have been mostly stable from a longer view -- and much more so than any previous president Gallup has tracked.
Trump's weak spot as of now, in the eyes of Americans, is race relations. Members of the president's own political party give him fairly high marks on the issue, but there's no racial group in which a majority approves of how he's handled these matters.
The fact that Trump's overall job approval rating exceeds his race relations rating by seven points suggests that some Americans are willing to look past their disapproval of him on racial issues, perhaps because of his performance on the economy. Americans' improved assessments of the economy and their optimism for its future have been evident in Gallup polls since Trump took office -- and it's an issue Trump has touted both on the campaign trail and from the White House.
Across a variety of measures, the U.S. economy is in much better health than it was before his inauguration. But if red flags about a looming recession continue, this could imperil not just Trump's ratings on the economy but overall approval of his presidential performance.
Explore President Trump's approval ratings and compare them with those of past presidents in the Gallup Presidential Job Approval Center.
View complete question responses and trends (PDF download).
Learn more about how the Gallup Poll Social Series works.
