As we head into the new year and the second year of President Donald Trump’s second term in the White House, 61% of Americans “express that the economy is not working well for them personally,” according to a new NPR/PBS News/Marist poll.
This poll of 1,440 adults was conducted last week and that figure is up from 57% in May. These poll results also included the lowest approval rating from Americans regarding Trump’s handling of the economy recorded by Marist since the start of his term – 36%. His overall approval rating didn’t fare much better at 38%.
“Americans have serious concerns about the economy and how these larger economic forces will influence their personal finances in 2026,” said Marist.
It did note, however, that responses differ greatly across party lines, with 73% of Democrats who said that the economy wasn’t working for them, compared to 37% of Republicans. Independents were more in line with the overall figure with 64% who said the economy isn’t working for them personally.
“Independents have grown sour on the President’s approach to the economy,” Marist explained. “While 24% of independents approve of how he is dealing with the economy now, 32% did so in July.”
In addition to revealing that the economy isn’t working for them, Americans also shared concerns about prices. For example, 70% said the cost of living in their area is not very affordable or not affordable at all. Last week, Audacy reported on data that backs up this sentiment – it indicated that 75% of homes in the U.S. are unaffordable for the middle class.
One in three people who participated in the recent Marist poll also said their personal finances have deteriorated over the past year. Nearly three in 10 expect their financial picture to get even gloomier next year.
That might be why a majority (57%) of Americans said they have a pessimistic outlook regarding the state of the world in 2026. Again, this answer was split along party lines, with 81% of Democrats who said they had a pessimistic view, compared to 36% of Republicans. A majority of independents (64%) have a pessimistic view as well.
“Regardless of party, a plurality of Americans (45%) say the economic issue which most concerns them right now is prices,” Marist added. “Housing costs (18%) is distant second followed by tariffs (15%), job security (10%), interest rates (9%), and stock market volatility (4%).”
More than half (54%) of Americans are extremely concerned or concerned that their household will be unable to pay for healthcare services in the coming year. Most Americans (52%) also think the U.S. is already in a recession.
Trump has argued that his administration had done great things for the economy, citing his tariff plans. His administration has also announced that working Americans should expect $1,000 to $2,000 tax refunds next year. Those plans have been controversial, and the new poll found that 67% of Americans have some degree of concern about the impact of tariffs on their financial situation. Still, that’s down from 81% in June.
Overall, 24% of Americans reported that their expenses on a monthly basis are more than what they earn each month. Almost half (47%) said their monthly income about matches their expenses and 29% say their income consistently exceeds their expenses. Along with these figures, about one in three Americans (33%) are very or completely dissatisfied with the amount of money they currently have saved.
Midterm elections are coming up next year, and this poll showed that 37% of Americans say the Democratic Party is the party to better handle the economy compared to 33% who believe the Republicans “are better equipped to address the economic forces at play.” In September 2022, more Americans had faith that the Republican party could handle things better than Democrats.
Just last week another poll from AP NORC found that 70% of participants described the economy as “poor” and recent Gallup polling also showed that Trump’s economic approval rating was falling.