Voters sour on Trump job performance at 100-day mark: DDHQ/NewsNation poll

Voters are souring on President Trump’s administration 100 days after he was sworn in for a second term, according to a poll released Wednesday from Decision Desk HQ for NewsNation.

The survey shows 44 percent of registered voters approve of Trump’s job performance, compared to 56 percent who disapprove. That places him in a considerably weaker position than most of his recent predecessors have been at this stage of his term — except for Trump’s first administration.

While Republicans remain overwhelmingly behind Trump and supportive of his policies, he’s struggling with independents, with just a third saying they approve of his job performance. Democrats are solidly opposed, with 9 in 10 saying they disapprove of his presidency.

The poll results are sure to be a topic of discussion on Wednesday night, when Trump is expected to phone into a town hall with NewsNation host Chris Cuomo at 8 p.m. ET.

The results also add to others that have suggested troubling signs for the outlook for Trump’s presidency. The 100-day mark has historically been a moment of reflection to take stock of what a president has accomplished and how the country views them.

For decades, presidents have enjoyed approval ratings above water at least in the first 100 days, when political capital and goodwill is higher. But numerous pollsters have found Trump clearly in the negative in recent weeks.

As of Tuesday, Trump’s approval rating stood at 44 percent in the polling average kept by DDHQ/The Hill, while his disapproval was at 53.3 percent.

As other polls have shown, the economy appears to be Trump’s biggest vulnerability in the latest poll.

Half of all respondents said they believe Trump’s handling of the economy has been worse than expected, including 34 percent who said it has been much worse. Only 26 percent said his handling has been better than expected, while 23 percent said it’s been as expected.

More than 90 percent said they’re concerned about inflation, which most listed as the biggest problem facing the country today. More than 80 percent said they’re concerned about the United States falling into a recession, including half who said they’re very concerned.

Instituting tariffs on many countries around the world has been a signature policy for Trump, who has argued the U.S. has been taken advantage of and needs to even the playing field.

But the tariffs have met stiff resistance among the public, with two-thirds in the poll agreeing tariffs hurt consumers and raise prices. They also said they would support continuing to rely on foreign manufacturing if it means lower prices.

More than 80 percent of respondents, including 69 percent of Republicans and 86 percent of independents, said they’re worried about a major trade war unfolding.

Immigration remains Trump’s strongest issue, as was the economy until recently.

A slight plurality — 39 percent — said Trump’s handling of immigration is better than they expected, while 37 percent said it’s been worse than expected and 23 percent pegged it as roughly as expected.

The public is almost evenly split on the best approach to illegal immigration. About half said those who entered the country without authorization deserve access to legal hearings and due process before being deported, while half said they should be quickly detained and deported even if it limits their legal appeals.

Support for Trump’s handling of immigration has started to dip a bit in other polls, but they have found greater support for his calls for mass deportations.

But outside of immigration, the poll doesn’t show much other good news for Trump.

Almost half of the respondents said Trump’s handling of foreign policy has been worse than expected, while only 30 percent said it’s been better than expected. A clear majority oppose Trump’s calls for annexing Greenland and making Canada the 51st state.

Elon Musk, whom Democrats have targeted and sought to make a proxy for Trump, has an even worse favorability rating than the president, with 55 percent viewing him unfavorably and 37 percent viewing him favorably.

Trump has acknowledged that Americans could feel some temporary economic pain as a result of the tariffs, but the poll found 58 percent said they’re not willing to experience short-term drawbacks for longer-term gains and that the country should address inflation and job security now.

The biggest positive news for Democrats may be their 5-point lead in the generic congressional ballot over the GOP, 45 percent to 40 percent. The question is often an indicator of how the parties may perform in the next congressional elections.

But the party is still facing some of its own struggles. The Democratic Party has recently seen some of its lowest approval ratings on record, and the DDHQ poll showed the party still only has a 1-point lead over the Republicans on which party cares more about issues that matter to people like them.

The poll was conducted April 23-27 among 1,448 registered voters and has a margin of error of 2.4 percentage points.