Americans are concluding 2025 in a sour mood about Congress,the economyand the direction of the country, according to a new national poll.
A new two-week poll from Gallup released on Dec. 22 shows that a majority of Americans are unhappy about congressional leaders on both sides of the aisle, dissatisfied with the way things are going in the country and do not approve of the country's top leaders in the White House,Supreme Courtand the Federal Reserve.
PresidentDonald Trump's approval rating for the last month of the year is also weak, standing at 36%, though it's buoyed by a strong 89% level of support among Republicans. Among independents, his support in the latest Gallup poll is 25%. Democrats' opinions of the president tanked to 3% in the survey.
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Thepoll surveyed 1,016 U.S. adultsliving in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia, between Dec. 1 and Dec. 15. The margin of error is ±4 percentage points.
The president's December approval rating is unchanged from last month's Gallup numbers, when itfell to the lowest of his second term, just barely above his personal low of 34% in January 2021. However, the poll shows a steep drop in support compared with the latest daily polling averages. TheNew York Times' Dec. 23 average, which includes the Gallup numbers, found Trump had a 42% approval and 54% disapproval ratings.RealClearPolitics' daily average is similar, at 43% approval and 53% disapproval.
More:New Trump approval rating poll finds worsening support among MAGA base
Respondents' opinions of Congress and leaders are poor
Overall approval of Congress in the December poll is 17%. It mirrors the president's approval rating in that it shows a deep partisan divide. Americans' approval of Congress is statistically similar to what it was in November, at 14%, according to Gallup; however, it is several points higher than the pollster's all-time low of 9%, which was measured in November 2013.
Broken down by party, Republicans give the current GOP-led Congress the highest marks, with 37% approving of the body's job performance. Only 12% of independents and 6% of Democrats approve.
None of the 12 other U.S. leaders from Congress, the Cabinet, the Supreme Court or the Federal Reserve earned majority-level approval, either. The two Senate leaders, Republican John Thune and Democrat Chuck Schumer, ranked the lowest on the list, with 34% and 28% approval ratings, respectively.
At the top end, only Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell and Secretary of State Marco Rubio cleared the 40% mark, at 44% and 41% approval, respectively.
Ratings ranged from 35% to 39% for eight others, including Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, Defense SecretaryPete Hegseth, Attorney GeneralPam Bondi, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and Vice PresidentJD Vance.
Mood on economy continues to sour
The December Gallup poll is the latest in a string of national surveys in the last few months to reflect the country'sworsening mood about the economy, including a drop in rating forTrump's performancetackling the issue.
Gallup's Economic Confidence Index, which summarizes Americans' evaluations of current economic conditions and their perceptions of the economy, hit -33 in the recent poll. It marks a 10-point decrease from October, and a 19-point dive from June's numbers. It has a theoretical range of -100 to +100.
Americans are also more inclined to name economic issues as the most important problem facing the country, the pollster said. Currently, 35% say it's the top concern, up from 24% in September and October.
Declining views about the economy have coincided with a downturn in overall dissatisfaction about the direction of the country in recent months, according to Gallup.
The poll found 74% of Americans are dissatisfied with the way things are going in the country, while 24% are satisfied. The figures were unchanged from November's, but more negative than all other Gallup readings since January. Satisfaction levels remained slightly higher than at the end of the Biden administration.
Kathryn Palmer is a politics reporter for USA TODAY. You can reach her atkapalmer@usatoday.comand on X @KathrynPlmr. Sign up for her daily politics newsletterhere.
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