With midterm elections coming up at the end of the year, Americans are sick of both the Republican and Democratic parties, a new poll suggests. This comes amid a partial government shutdown and after the longest government shut down in history last year.
Respondents to the CNN poll conducted by SSRS Opinion Panel included nationally representative adults over age 18 who were surveyed from March 26 through March 30. Both parties had an unfavorable rating upwards of 50%, per the results.
“About one-quarter of the public holds a negative view of both parties – so-called double haters,” CNN explained. “Voters in that group prefer the Democrats in the upcoming midterms by 31 points.”
Overall, however, Republicans had a slightly more favorable approval rating at 32% compared to Democrats’ 28%. CNN said that is “in large part because Republicans take a more positive view of their own party than do Democrats.”
Looking towards the midterms, the results also showed that about 54% of people feel motivated to vote in the upcoming congressional elections. Of those expected voters, 48% said they were leaning towards Democratic candidates, compared to 42% who were leaning towards GOP candidates.
In October 2024, shortly before President Donald Trump scored his second term in the White House and the GOP took control of both congressional chambers, 47% of voters leaned towards the Republican candidate, compared to 45% of Democrats. CNN polling since October 2025 has indicates that the public has consistently leaned toward Democratic candidates since then.
CNN’s recent poll results come at a challenging time for Trump. Since he announced the U.S. had joined Israel to attack Iran in late February, the conflict has dragged on longer than expected, causing gas prices to shoot up. Low public support for the war and economic dissatisfaction have contributed to the president’s approval rating falling, Audacy reported this week. According to the CNN poll, 59% of respondents said that Congress does too little to check Trump.
Multiple government shutdowns since Trump began his second term also highlight how polarized the parties have become. In addition to having a dismal view of the parties overall, party leaders on both sides – Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) as well as House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) – all had negative ratings in CNN’s poll.
“There is such a divide and no one can compromise to get anything done,” wrote an independent who answered the survey. “They act like spoiled brats.”
Even within the parties, there are stress points of contention.
Looking towards the midterms, CNN noted that the “double haters” tend to play a key role in elections. They were decisive in the 2016 presidential election and the 2024 presidential election, the outlet said.
“The vote preferences of the current crop of double haters are driven more by opposition to the GOP rather than enthusiasm for the Democrats,” CNN said. It also reported that “compared to the midterms in President Donald Trump’s first term, both the president and the Democrats have grown less popular,” with many voters expecting to vote Democrat in the midterms seeing their vote as a message of opposition to Trump and Republicans.
CNN said that, on the Democrats’ side, 72% said that a divide over the nation’s approach to Israel is causing problems within the party, while two-thirds said the party has divides over its priorities and ideological position and a 58% majority said the party is divided over whether Democratic elected officials should ever cooperate with Trump. On the Republican side, there are also some divides over Israel and other priorities, though not as stark as the Democrats’ results. Moderates and younger voters were more likely to say there are party divides.
“Younger Republican-aligned voters… stand out as particularly disengaged from the coming election: Just 33% of Republican and Republican-leaning voters younger than 45 say they’re extremely motivated to vote, compared with a majority of older Republicans,” said CNN.
