President Donald Trump’s support from independent voters dropped to a new low following the widely condemned shooting of Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old nurse. According to the latest polls, a record high 49% of Americans say they strongly disapprove of Trump’s job handling. The new poll should be a cause for concern for the existing government.
Reports show independent support polls for Donald Trump
The latest Economist / YouGov Poll reports seem to indicate a significant drop in popularity for the controversial American President Donald Trump. As of the most recent survey, 39% of Americans strongly or somewhat approve of Trump’s job performance, while 57% disapprove, resulting in a net approval rating of minus 18. The figure is slightly higher than the previous week but remains relatively low.
Despite weekly fluctuations among Republican voters, a broader trend shows that approval of Trump’s performance within his own party has declined since the start of his second term.
The sharpest shift, however, appears among independent voters. Approval among Independents dropped to minus 40 this week, down from minus 31 the previous week. At the beginning of the month, the figure stood at minus 28, highlighting the scale of the change.
Currently, 27% of Independents approve of Trump’s job performance, while 67% disapprove, marking a record low among this group.
While the trend is notable, it may also reflect week-to-week variation.
The survey may have been influenced by the federal immigration crackdown in Minnesota, which has drawn widespread criticism. On January 24, 2026, Alex Pretti was shot and killed while protesting in Minneapolis against the federal immigration crackdown. Reports state that he was shot multiple times by Border Patrol agents.
The incident has drawn widespread criticism across the United States. It follows another fatal shooting weeks earlier, in which Renee Good was killed by an ICE agent.
