Is Trump making the economy better or worse? Here's what Americans said in a new poll

Brendan Rascius, Miami Herald on Mar 12, 2025

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In the lead-up to the 2024 election, the economy was one of then-candidate Donald Trump’s strongest issues. Many polls showed voters trusted him more than than-Vice President Kamala Harris to steer the country toward financial success.

But now — 50 days into Trump’s second term — the tide has turned, and the economy has become his weakest issue, according to a new Emerson College poll.

This shift comes in the wake of the president’s decision to levy tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China, which has created unease among consumers and businesses and triggered a significant stock market selloff.

The poll — which sampled 1,000 registered voters between March 8 and 10 — revealed that 48% of voters disapproved of Trump’s handling of the economy, while 37% approved, and 15% remained neutral.

Compared with nine other key issues, Trump’s marks on the economy were the poorest, illustrating the degree to which public opinion changed following the election.

For instance, slightly smaller pluralities — 47% and 46%, respectively — disapproved of his handling of U.S.-Canada relations and health care. And a plurality of 45% disapproved of his handling of the Russia-Ukraine war. In contrast, Trump’s approval rating was highest on immigration policy, with a plurality of 48% expressing approval.

Other questions about Trump’s economic policies further indicated unease among voters.

Forty-six percent of voters said “Trump’s economic policies are making the economy worse.” A far smaller share, 28%, said they are improving the economy, and 26% said his policies haven’t had an effect or it is too early to tell.

Moreover, 53% said they believed that increasing tariffs on other countries would harm the U.S. economy. In comparison, 37% thought tariffs would benefit the economy, and 11% predicted no impact.

The poll also revealed that 39% felt their family’s financial situation had worsened compared with a year ago. In contrast, 37% reported no change, and 24% said their situation had improved. The poll has a margin of error of 3 percentage points.

“Black voters are most likely to report being worse off financially than a year ago, at 52%, compared to 40% of Hispanic voters and 38% of white voters who say the same,” Spencer Kimball, the executive director of Emerson College Polling, said.