Democrats Hit Record Low Approval Among Own Voters as Party Struggles Post-2024

by Worthy News Washington D.C. Bureau Staff

(Worthy News) – The Democratic Party has sunk to historic lows in favorability — even among its own voters — as it struggles to recover from the crushing 2024 election defeat and adjust to the return of President Donald Trump in the White House.

A new Gallup survey found just 73% of Democrats view their party favorably, the lowest rating on record and a sharp 14-point drop from November 2024, when 87% approved. By contrast, 91% of Republicans give their party a positive review.

Gallup notes that since 2008, Democrats have generally expressed more satisfaction with their party than Republicans have with theirs — a dynamic now reversed for only the second extended period since polling began. The previous Democratic low was 77% in May 2017, early in Trump’s first term.

Independents are unimpressed with either major party, giving Democrats a 27% approval rating and Republicans 28%. Overall, just 34% of U.S. adults view the Democratic Party favorably — the lowest Gallup has measured since it began tracking in 1992. The previous nadir was 36% after the GOP seized full control of Congress in the 2014 midterms. Republicans currently sit slightly higher, at 38% approval.

The poor ratings come as Democrats face a leadership vacuum on Capitol Hill, with Republicans controlling both the House and Senate. President Trump has moved swiftly on campaign pledges to cut taxes, tighten immigration enforcement, and crack down on crime — initiatives that have rallied Republican voters while frustrating Democrats who see their party sidelined.

Democrats are eyeing the upcoming gubernatorial contests in Virginia and New Jersey as potential opportunities to regain momentum. But those efforts are being overshadowed by the meteoric rise of New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani, a 33-year-old Democratic socialist whose insurgent campaign has rattled party leadership and given Republicans new ammunition to paint Democrats as extremists.

At the national level, newly appointed Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin has been tasked with unifying the party, but financial woes are compounding the challenge. As of June, the DNC held just $15 million in cash compared to the Republican National Committee’s $81 million war chest.

Adding to the bad news, a CNBC survey released Thursday pegged the Democratic Party’s net favorability at -32 — the lowest rating for either major party since at least 1996. The poll shows just 24% of voters view Democrats positively, while 56% hold a negative view.

The party’s steep decline has fueled calls for new leadership and a redefined platform, with strategists warning that unless Democrats reconnect with working- and middle-class voters before the 2026 midterms, the damage could deepen.

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