A new survey from CNBC on Thursday shows that the Democratic Party’s net favorability has hit a near three-decade low.
Why It Matters
The Democratic Party has been in turmoil since the 2024 election cycle, when then-former President Donald Trump defeated then-Vice President Kamala Harris.
Party leaders have faced mounting pressure to redefine their economic platform and reestablish credibility with working- and middle-class voters before the 2026 midterms.
The 2024 election losses and subsequent polling lows could new leaders and new messaging is needed. Some analysts have identified widespread dissatisfaction within the Democratic base, with multiple polls indicating that a large share of Democratic voters are dissatisfied with current leadership and want new voices at the top of the party.
Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images
What To Know
In the new poll, the Democratic Party carries a -32 net favorability rating among registered voters.
“The -32 rating appeared to be the lowest rating for either party going back to at least 1996,” CNBC said of the survey.
The Party has a 24 percent positive rating and a 56 percent negative rating.
Trump’s approval rating in the same poll is 46 percent versus a 51 percent disapproval rating. The president had a negative net approval rating on key policy issues like tariffs, inflation, taxes and federal spending.
“There also is unambiguous disapproval of the president’s foreign policy (-14 points), federal spending (-19 points), taxes (-13 points) and inflation (-23 points), which is unchanged from April,” CNBC said of the numbers.
The CNBC All-America Economic Survey was conducted from July 29 through August 3, among 1,000 people across the country. The survey has a plus or minus 3.1 percentage point margin of error.
What People Are Saying
Republican pollster Micah Roberts, partner with Public Opinion Strategies, which conducted the survey: “Trump’s approval is stable, but his individual ratings are down on issue after issue, except for tariffs.
“Economic optimism is higher, but there’s been no relief in this data from inflation.”
Political analyst Craig Agranoff told Newsweek via text message on Thursday: “The CNBC Survey’s finding that Democratic favorability has hit a new low, its lowest in nearly three decades, likely reflecting frustration over the 2024 election loss, perceived economic failures under Biden, and internal party divisions.”
Agranoff added, “To recover, Democrats need to unify around policies addressing key issues like housing and jobs, invest in grassroots organizing, and elevate new leadership to articulate a compelling vision beyond opposition to Trump.”
What Happens Next
What impact these record-low favorability ratings could depend on both parties’ ability to mobilize their bases and whether or not they can appeal to increasingly pivotal independent voters.
