Bipartisan majority of Americans blame Trump policies for rising costs: Reuters poll

Some 78% of Americans blame President Donald Trump's policies for rising prices that are outpacing their earnings, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll that found majorities of Republicans and Democrats citing the cost of living as their top concern ahead of next month's midterm elections.

Fifty-seven per cent of Trump's Republican supporters said costs had been rising faster than their pay packets, highlighting how his pursuit of import tariffs, the war with Iran and other policies have clashed with a central 2024 campaign promise to end inflation and lower prices "on day one".

Inflation has instead increased, prompting the US Federal Reserve to pivot to interest rate hikes to curb price rises. Policymakers have attributed the increases to various factors, including rising global energy costs following the start of the Iran war and the administration's imposition of aggressive import tariffs.

Concerns about the economy and the war have driven Trump's public approval ratings to record lows and have weighed on support for his party ahead of the 3 November election, which will determine control of Congress for the next two years.

About one in four Republicans disapproved of Trump's handling of the economy, a view shared by 63% of independents and 92% of Democrats. Disapproval was even higher over inflation, with 68% of all respondents and 40% of Republicans dissatisfied.

Jeffrey Talley, 65, a retired bank examiner from Mission Hills, Kansas, is a registered Republican who said he voted for Trump in 2016 but not in 2020 or 2024. He now plans to vote for Democrat Adam Hamilton in what has become an unexpectedly competitive Senate race in the state.

"I'm pretty much against all the nonsense that's going on in the Middle East with the Iran war, and pushing up the price of gasoline ... that's been very disheartening," Talley said. He views the election as a chance to elect "somebody to put a check and balance on the craziness that's going on in the White House".

The six-day Reuters/Ipsos poll, conducted online nationwide and completed on Monday, gathered responses from 4,506 US adults. It had a margin of error of 2 percentage points for Americans overall and 3 points for Republicans, Democrats and independents.

Everything has gone up

The national average price of a gallon of petrol stood at $4.36 on Thursday, compared with $3.11 a year earlier, while diesel prices reached $6.28 after a record surge that may have been felt most acutely in farming states such as Kansas.

Another Kansan, 41-year-old Athena Barrett of Kansas City, said Trump's performance had motivated her to register to vote because "I don't really like what the president is doing".

"Gas prices ... food prices, the cost of living – everything has gone up; what's going on with Iran, and all the stuff with immigration," said Barrett, who is Hispanic.

Hispanic voters supported Trump in large numbers in 2024, but polls have shown that support eroding.

White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers said Trump had ended the "inflation crisis" inherited from his predecessor, Democrat Joe Biden, by boosting the economy through tax cuts and lowering the cost of prescription drugs. "The president has delivered tangible wins for American families," Rogers said by email.

Inflation surged to a 40-year high during Biden's term and played an important role in Trump's 2024 election victory.

Its persistence, although below the peaks reached during the Covid-19 pandemic, has meant higher everyday prices for items such as petrol, minced beef and airline tickets, as well as higher interest rates. The interest rate on a 30-year mortgage is now 7.5%, double the level homebuyers were accustomed to just six years ago.

Poll respondents cited the cost of living as a major factor in their voting decisions, with 54% of respondents, including 40% of Republicans, saying they felt it had increased substantially over the past year. Another 30% said it had risen only slightly, while 10% said it was unchanged.

Some 78% of respondents, including 64% of Republicans and 76% of independents, said the White House bore at least some responsibility, with most Americans viewing tariffs as an important cause of higher prices.

Little hit to spending

The poll offered only limited evidence that people were cutting back on spending. Some 63% of respondents said they were eating out at restaurants less often, while 56% said they were spending less on entertainment or streaming services.

Smaller proportions said they were driving less or falling behind on bills.

Economic data shows that Americans are still making modest income gains overall, even after accounting for taxes and rising prices. Hourly wage growth is broadly in line with the consumer price index, meaning much of any increase in pay is being absorbed by higher prices. This financial stagnation can sour attitudes towards the economy.

Consumer confidence surveys by both the Conference Board and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York have reflected a pessimistic outlook.

Some of Trump's policies continue to resonate with voters. About 45% of respondents said unauthorised immigration was a root cause of higher prices, echoing the administration's argument that people in the country illegally create additional demand for goods and services such as housing, pushing up costs.

Herman Sims, 67, of Dallas, has voted Republican since 2012 and plans to continue doing so in a close Senate race between Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and Democrat James Talarico, despite working for a trucking company hit hard by high diesel prices.

Although he said he disagreed with Trump's decision to go to war with Iran, he would not vote for a Democrat.

"What I've seen with the Democratic Party is they care more about themselves and will tell you anything, but they're more about spending," he said.