Donald Trump wants the midterm elections to be all about Donald Trump. Republicans think they have little choice but to go along.

Many of those Republicans ― or at least the political operatives working for them ― are fully aware they don’t really want the president to show up in their districts. Trump is deeply unpopular, with voter anger at his decision to launch a costly war in Iran and his failure to lower prices driving his approval rating down into the 30s in most public opinion surveys.

But downballot Republicans, who have seen their majorities in the House and Senate become deeply endangered, are not responding by breaking with Trump. They long ago decided on a midterm strategy of tying themselves to the president in hopes of turning out low-propensity conservative voters, and they are desperate for his political operation to spend the hundreds of millions of dollars he has hoarded so far.

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[–] 10 points 4 days ago (4 children)

His approval rating in Jan 2025 was 47%

Percentage of votes doesn't directly translate to approval ratings.

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  • [+] -13 points 4 days ago (3 children)

    I assume those who voted for him strongly supported him. Those who didn’t vote at all but approved of him in 2025 weren’t steadfast, so it makes sense that their beliefs changed over time.

    It’s evident by social media posts - people saying that they voted for him 3 times and would do it again, ie: letters to him. In fact his hard core supporter group increased, it went from 30% to over 30%. He’s doing well.

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  • [–] 6 points 4 days ago

    That's silly, even RealClearPolitics has him at a significantly lower approval rating than back when he was elected. Same with favorability. They don't have him quite as low as Nate Silver, but still significantly lower than around the election.

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