More than half of all voters are still giving President Donald Trump high marks as he rounds out his first 100 days in office.
In a sign of his enduring popularity, especially among independent voters, President Trump is scoring high marks for his job performance, especially regarding reducing illegal immigration and government spending.
The massive poll of 2,286 registered voters, conducted by Harvard’s Center for American Political Studies, The Harris Poll, and HarrisX and released Monday, shows at least 48% of voters still believe Trump is the right man for the moment. That compares to 46% of respondents who disapprove of his job performance and another 6% who said they “don’t know” or don’t have an opinion.
“Trump’s approval is still above water but has dipped four points,” pollsters wrote, noting “Trump’s highest approval is on his handling of immigration and reducing (government) costs, while his lowest is on tariffs and inflation.”
Just over half polled, or 51%, say Trump is right on the money with his immigration policies, a finding in line with past results showing that most Americans approve of his long-stated plans for mass deportations. A flashpoint in the immigration debate occurred on Monday when Trump and El Salvador’s president Nayib Bukele both said they do not plan to help spring an alleged MS-13 gang member out of an El Salvador prison and return him to Maryland, where he was apprehended earlier this month.
Similarly, exactly half of respondents approve of Trump’s work toward “reducing the cost of the government,” another high-profile cause carried out by advisor Elon Musk and the U.S. Department of Government Efficiency.
Other findings include just under half (49%) approve of Trump “returning America to its values,” 43% approve of the president’s handling of the economy, and 41% agree with the job he’s done managing inflation and tariffs.
Pollsters found that “inflation remains the top issue for voters across party lines,” according to the Boston Herald.
President Trump’s immigration policies found strong support, while his economic policies were more polarizing.
About three in four voters say they are in favor of “deporting immigrants who are here illegally and have committed crimes” while seven in 10 are supportive of “closing the border with added security and policies that discourage illegal crossings.”
Half of those polled say they support “placing tariffs on goods from China, Mexico and Canada to encourage U.S. manufacturing.”
A combined 56% of respondents say Trump is doing better than expected or just as expected.
The findings underscore both successes and setbacks in the early months of President Trump’s second term. He has vowed to carry out the largest mass deportation in U.S. history in response to the largest influx of illegal and asylum immigrants ever recorded under the Biden-Harris administration.
At the same time, he continues to wage a tariff war with China, a battle that has drawn support across traditional partisan lines. On Monday, Shawn Fain, president of the United Auto Workers union, praised Trump’s tariff policies, saying they would “bring work back” to the U.S. Fain and the UAW previously endorsed former Vice President Kamala Harris.
