What happened in this Geopolitics story?

Two polls show Trump's approval has plunged to record lows of 33–36% weeks before midterm elections, as voters punish him over the Iran war and inflation that has pushed petrol to $4.33 a gallon.

What is a key fact in this story? (1)

**Trump's** approval rating hit record lows in two polls — 33% in the Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos survey and 36% in Fox News — with 52% strongly disapproving and an 8-point decline from the same period a year earlier.

What is a key fact in this story? (2)

**Inflation** handling collapsed to 22% approval in the Fox News poll, down from 36% last summer, while 70% of respondents disapproved of Trump's management of the economy and 69% disapproved of his tariff approach.

📎 SkimNews has covered Trump 1376+ times · see the file →

Iran war, inflation drag Trump's approval to record low weeks before midterms — SkimNews

By India Today World · Summarized & edited by Kapil Samant · 2026-10-19

Get the Geopolitics newsletter

Daily geopolitics — wars, elections, sanctions, the diplomatic moves that move markets. Free.

Trump's approval rating hit record lows in two polls — 33% in the Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos survey and 36% in Fox News — with 52% strongly disapproving and an 8-point decline from the same period a year earlier.
Inflation handling collapsed to 22% approval in the Fox News poll, down from 36% last summer, while 70% of respondents disapproved of Trump's management of the economy and 69% disapproved of his tariff approach.
Petrol prices hit $4.33 per gallon on Wednesday, $1.25 higher than a year earlier, a direct cost the Iran conflict is imposing on American households and a figure Trump conceded could cost Republicans votes.
Democrats gained their first advantage over Republicans on handling the economy in over a decade, per the Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos survey, with 72% of Americans saying the country is heading the wrong direction.
Democratic voters showed a turnout edge: 75% of Democratic registered voters said they were certain to vote or had already cast ballots, versus 67% of Republicans overall and just 57% among non-MAGA Republicans.
Polls point to Democrats winning the House — where all 435 seats are up November 3 — while the 35-seat Senate map remains too close to call.

Why it matters: A Republican loss of the House would significantly constrain Trump's legislative agenda during his final two years and hand Democrats subpoena power to investigate his administration; the 8-point approval drop since last year and a 57% certainty-to-vote rate among non-MAGA Republicans suggest the turnout math is tilting toward that outcome.