President Donald Trump’s approval rating has fallen among Americans with lower levels of formal education over the past three months, according to a new Quantus Insights poll released Thursday.
The dip adds to mounting challenges for the president as voters report rising anxiety about the U.S. economy and continued frustration with affordability.
Why It Matters
Exit polls from the 2024 presidential election suggested a clear education divide: states with fewer college graduates favored Trump, while states with more college graduates backed Kamala Harris. College graduates made up 43 percent of the electorate, and 55 percent supported the then-vice president.
“It should come as no great surprise that a Democratic Party which has abandoned working class people would find that the working class has abandoned them,” Democratic Sen. Bernie Sanders wrote in a post on X in November 2024.
Now, however, recent polling indicates Trump may be losing ground with the very voters who helped form a key part of his coalition. The latest Emerson College Polling survey found 41 percent approve of Trump’s job performance, while 50 percent disapprove.
In December, these number had changed significantly—especially among noncollege educated Americans. Only 46 percent of voters whose higher educational title was a high school diploma or less approved of the president’s job performance, while 49 percent disapproved of it and 5 percent were unsure.
What To Know
According to Quantus, which surveyed voters December 15–16, 44 percent of Americans approve of Trump’s job performance and 53 percent disapprove.
Quantus’ prior results show a gradual erosion over time:
- October: 47% approve, 51% disapprove
- November: 43% approve, 55% disapprove
- December: 44% approve, 53% disapprove
The most notable shift, the poll suggests, is among non-college voters.
In October, Quantus found:
- College-educated voters: 42% approve, 56% disapprove
- Non-college-educated voters: 50% approve, 47% disapprove (net +3)
By December, the picture had changed sharply among those with the lowest education levels. Among voters whose highest credential is a high school diploma or less, 46 percent approved, 49 percent disapproved, and 5 percent were unsure.
What People Are Saying
White House spokesman Kush Desai previously told Newsweek: “President Trump inherited the worst inflation crisis in a generation from Joe Biden’s incompetence, and his Administration has rapidly cooled inflation to a 2.5 percent annualized rate.
“As the Administration’s supply-side policies of tax cuts, deregulation, and energy abundance continue taking effect, Americans can count on inflation continuing to fall and real wages continuing to rise.”
Trump wrote in a December 11 Truth Social post: “I inherited a MESS from the Biden Administration — The Worst Inflation in History, and the Highest Prices our Country has ever seen. In other words, Affordability, just 13 months ago, was a DISASTER for the American People, but now, it’s totally different!
“Prices are coming down FAST, Energy, Oil and Gasoline, are hitting five year lows, and the Stock Market today just hit an All Time High. Tariffs are bringing in Hundreds of Billions of Dollars, and we are respected as a Nation again. When will I get credit for having created, with No Inflation, perhaps the Greatest Economy in the History of our Country? When will people understand what is happening? When will Polls reflect the Greatness of America at this point in time, and how bad it was just one year ago?”
Mark Shanahan, who teaches American politics at the University of Surrey in the U.K., previously told Newsweek: “Trump promised an invigorated U.S. economy, and people simply aren’t feeling it. He’s visibly in decline and becoming angrier by the day.”
What Happens Next
Trump’s weakening standing across voter groups—especially among non-college Americans—could give Democrats an opening ahead of next year’s midterm elections, as the party looks to rebuild support with working-class voters it has struggled to hold in recent cycles.
