(The Hill) — Nearly three-quarters of Americans say economic conditions are poor or fair, according to a new poll from the Pew Research Center.
The percentage of Americans who share this sentiment has risen to 76 percent, a slight increase from January 2024 when it was 72 percent, according to the latest findings. Back then, a similar portion believed that the economic conditions were fair or poor.
Conversely, Friday’s poll shows that 24 percent of respondents view economic conditions as being good or excellent.
The primary reasons Americans cite for their negative economic outlook include rising costs and personal expenses, accounting for 42 percent. Following this are concerns about high inflation at 17 percent, the cost of living at 9 percent, and food and grocery prices at 6 percent.
In terms of political influence, 53 percent of Americans indicated that President Trump’s economic strategies have worsened conditions. Meanwhile, 22 percent believe his policies have been largely ineffective, and 24 percent credit him with improving the economic situation.
Forty-six percent of those polled expect economic conditions to worsen by next year, Pew found.
Pollsters noted, “The changes are mainly influenced by declining optimism among Republicans, though they still tend to describe the current economic conditions more positively than Democrats.”
Recent polling reflects unfavorably on the president, with approval ratings at a low of 43 percent, as reported by Marquette University Law School in Milwaukee. This marks the lowest of his second term.
The same day, a Washington Post survey indicated that 47 percent of Americans attributed the ongoing government shutdown to Trump and congressional Republicans as it extended into its third day on Friday. In contrast, Democrats in Congress were blamed by 33 percent.
The Pew Research Center’s poll was conducted Sept. 22-28 and included 3,445 respondents. The margin of error is 1.9 percentage points.
