Trump's approval rating threatens Republican control of Congress
President's low ratings and historical trends pose challenges for GOP in upcoming midterm elections.
AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made
President Donald Trump speaks while hosting a dinner in the Rose Garden at the White House (Reuters)
Photograph: The Independent (US) (embedded from source)
What this story says
- President Donald Trump's approval rating is near historic lows, with voters citing the economy and the war with Iran as key concerns.
- The president's party has a historical tendency to lose House seats in midterm elections, a pattern dating back to 1938.
- Registered voters currently favor Democratic congressional candidates over Republicans by five percentage points.
- Republicans are attempting to shift focus from Trump by characterizing Democratic candidates as far-left.
Who covered it
Percentages are shares of the 9 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. Coverage measured .
Trust
50/100
Craft
65/100
Hype
45/100
9 sources · methodology
Thin on the right so far
Only 1 of the 9 outlets with a published leaning rating that ran this story are rated right.
This story is still being watched, so it is a count and not yet a finding. Coverage keeps arriving for hours after an event, and a side that has published nothing this morning may publish by tonight. If it is still true when we stop checking, we will say so plainly.
President Donald Trump's approval ratings are near historic lows, presenting a challenge for Republicans seeking to maintain their narrow majorities in Congress. The midterm elections, scheduled for November 3, will see all 435 House seats and approximately one-third of the Senate contested. Recent polling indicates that registered voters favor Democratic congressional candidates over Republicans by five percentage points. Historically, the president's party has lost House seats in almost every midterm election since 1938.
Voters have expressed particular unhappiness with the economy and the war with Iran, according to Reuters/Ipsos polling cited by The Independent. The president's net disapproval is nearly double what it was before the 2018 midterms, when Democrats gained 40 House seats. Democratic voters are also showing greater enthusiasm than Republicans, a trend observed in recent special and primary elections. The Independent noted that if voters wish to express displeasure with the president, the midterm elections offer the only avenue to do so by voting against his party.
Disagreement on economic factors
Political Wire reported that a global trade war initiated by President Trump is contributing to inflation and raising prices on everyday goods, while the war with Iran is causing fluctuations in gas prices. This report also stated that aggressive tax cuts have pushed the national debt past $40 trillion. The Independent's full report mentioned that voters are unhappy about the economy and the war with Iran but did not specify trade wars, inflation, or national debt figures.
What the coverage left out
None of the left-rated or centre-rated reports mentioned the specific figure of $400 million held by Trump's super PAC, a detail included in The Independent's full report.
Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 3 times, most recently on 7 Sept 2026, 13:30, and will add the sides that appear.
How each side covered it
Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.
Left
5 rated outlets
- Left-rated reports focused on President Trump's low approval ratings as a significant liability for Republicans in the upcoming midterms. The Independent's full report stated that Trump's sagging approval ratings are threatening Republicans' grip on Congress and that the election is likely to serve as a referendum on his presidency. This outlet also highlighted the potential for Democratic investigations into the administration and the party's ability to block Trump's nominees if they gain control of the Senate. The Daily Beast reported that Republican candidates are worried that association with Trump could backfire. USA Today noted a drop in Trump's approval among Republicans, according to new polling. Los Angeles Times reported that Trump faces a reckoning in the midterms centered on his economic record. Political Wire, in its digest, mentioned that a trade war led by Trump is fueling inflation and that tax cuts have increased national debt.
Centre
3 rated outlets
- Centre-rated reports highlighted President Trump's deep unpopularity as a threat to Republican chances of maintaining their congressional majorities. Reuters and WTVB both stated that warning signs abound for Republicans as the midterm campaign enters its final sprint. Reuters noted that Trump's unpopularity is imperiling Republican chances of maintaining narrow majorities with two months before the elections. WTVB also mentioned Trump's deep unpopularity imperiling Republican chances of maintaining narrow majorities with two months before the elections.
Right
1 rated outlet
We have not written our reading of the right coverage of this story. The right-rated outlets that ran it are listed below.
Questions about this coverage
- How did the left and right cover Trump's approval rating threatens Republican control of Congress?
- Of the 9 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 56% are rated left, 33% are rated centre, 11% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
- Is Trump's approval rating threatens Republican control of Congress left or right?
- Too few of the outlets on this story carry a published leaning rating to say. 9 of them do, and this site does not characterise a field under 12: at that size one newsroom filing moves the share by ten points. The percentages above are the count as it stands.
- Is the coverage of Trump's approval rating threatens Republican control of Congress biased?
- Trump's approval rating threatens Republican control of Congress is one event reported by 9 outlets, and this page does not rate the story as biased or unbiased. What it publishes is the spread: which outlets ran it, where named rating organisations place each of them on the spectrum, and what each side chose to lead with. A leaning rating describes an outlet's record over time, not this article, and the two should not be run together.
- Which side is not reporting Trump's approval rating threatens Republican control of Congress?
- When we first saw this story, outlets rated right had barely covered it. Coverage accretes for hours after an event, so that is where to look rather than a verdict — the split above is the current count, and it is the one to read.
- Which outlets covered Trump's approval rating threatens Republican control of Congress?
- 9 that we know of, every one of them listed further up this page with a link to its own report and to what we hold on the publisher. Nothing here is a summary of somebody else's summary: the outlets are named so the original reporting can be read.
- What is Donald Trump's current approval rating?
- President Donald Trump's approval rating is near historic lows, with voters expressing particular unhappiness about the economy and the war with Iran. His net disapproval is nearly twice what it was before the 2018 midterms.
- What is the historical trend for the president's party in midterm elections?
- The president's party has lost House seats in almost every midterm election since 1938. This historical pattern presents a challenge for Republicans in the upcoming November 3 elections.
- How do registered voters currently feel about congressional candidates?
- Registered voters currently favor Democratic congressional candidates over Republicans by five percentage points. This indicates a potential shift in voter preference ahead of the midterm elections.
- What strategies are Republicans using in response to Trump's unpopularity?
- Republicans are attempting to turn attention away from President Trump by portraying Democratic candidates as dangerously far to the left. They are attacking progressive candidates as socialists and communists.
Read it at the source
9 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.
Left
5- Trump’s sinking popularity could cost Republicans control of Congress (opens The Independent (US) in a new tab)
The Independent (US) — is The Independent (US) biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Trump’s sinking popularity could cost Republicans control of Congress (opens The Independent in a new tab)
The Independent — is The Independent biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Trump's economic record is working against him in the midterms (opens Los Angeles Times in a new tab)
Los Angeles Times — is Los Angeles Times biased? Our profile of this outletOpinion
- Republicans Panic as Trump Becomes Midterm ‘Ball and Chain’ (opens The Daily Beast in a new tab)
The Daily Beast — is The Daily Beast biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Trump's approval drops among Republicans ahead of midterms, new poll shows (opens USA Today in a new tab)
Centre
3- Trump’s Economic Record Is Working Against Him (opens Political Wire in a new tab)
Political Wire — is Political Wire biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Warning signs abound for Trump’s Republicans as midterm campaign begins final sprint (opens WTVB in a new tab)
- Warning signs abound for Trump's Republicans as midterm campaign begins final sprint (opens Reuters in a new tab)
Right
1Not rated
0No outlet in this group ran the story.
How did this read?
About the coverage, not about the story. We do not ask whether you agree with what happened — we have no honest use for that answer.
