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Trump's U.N. envoy Waltz says Iran war could last another year as Brent crude hits $112 Few House Republicans sign pledge to seat certified winners as Democrats plan for Jan. 3 Valadao defends Medicaid vote in California swing-district race: 'no actual cuts' Polls show more voters motivated to vote against Trump than for him before Nov. 3 AG James fights bid to bar her as special prosecutor in Cornell fraternity case Officials say touchscreen 'vote flipping' reports point to user error, not rigging Heating oil tops $6 a gallon, hitting homes in Maine and New Hampshire Senate states Plaintiffs ask judge to block Trump's Potomac arch before work could begin Nov. 5 On tape: Todd Blanche once argued the 30-day rule should never be departed from. Vanita Gupta calls it hypocrisy. On tape: Scott Colom says the president made $2.2 billion last year, mostly from crypto, and says it's time to debate Trump's U.N. envoy Waltz says Iran war could last another year as Brent crude hits $112 Few House Republicans sign pledge to seat certified winners as Democrats plan for Jan. 3 Valadao defends Medicaid vote in California swing-district race: 'no actual cuts' Polls show more voters motivated to vote against Trump than for him before Nov. 3 AG James fights bid to bar her as special prosecutor in Cornell fraternity case Officials say touchscreen 'vote flipping' reports point to user error, not rigging Heating oil tops $6 a gallon, hitting homes in Maine and New Hampshire Senate states Plaintiffs ask judge to block Trump's Potomac arch before work could begin Nov. 5 On tape: Todd Blanche once argued the 30-day rule should never be departed from. Vanita Gupta calls it hypocrisy. On tape: Scott Colom says the president made $2.2 billion last year, mostly from crypto, and says it's time to debate

Midterms 2026 · Report · File No. 261023-180

Polls show more voters motivated to vote against Trump than for him before Nov. 3

Two recent national polls find voters who are fired up for the Nov. 3 midterms are more likely to say they're voting against President Trump than for him. Trump has made the election about himself, and that could cost Republicans.

By the Campaign Desk · · 2 min read

Every quote in this story (2) was matched word for word against its source. How we work

Donald Trump
Donald Trump. Photo: Daniel Torok, Public domain

Eleven days before the Nov. 3 midterm elections, recent national polls point the same way. Voters who are motivated to cast ballots are more likely to say they are voting against President Trump than for him. That is a risk for Republicans, who control the White House, the House and the Senate.

What the polls found

A Reuters/Ipsos poll released Oct. 8 surveyed 4,506 U.S. adults online over six days. It has a margin of error of 2 percentage points. It found 48% of people who voted for Kamala Harris in 2024 are "very enthusiastic" about voting, compared with 30% of Trump voters 1.

Among enthusiastic voters, 62% said they are motivated by opposition to Trump. Another 36% said they are motivated by support for him 1. Trump's approval rating in that poll was 32%, a record low 1.

A PBS News/NPR/Marist poll taken Sept. 14-15 of 1,280 registered voters found a similar pattern. It put Democrats ahead on the generic ballot, 53% to 41%. The generic ballot asks voters which party they plan to back for Congress 2.

From Channel GOPTrump says he alone decides who gets paidDonald Trump · 123 plays · captioned, with the source named

In that poll, 45% of registered voters said they are mainly voting against Trump. Only 24% said they are mainly voting to support him. Among independents, the split was 54% to 12% 2.

Who said what

Lee Miringoff, director of the Marist Institute for Public Opinion, said "It's a nationalized election whether they like it or not." 2 Democratic strategist Joel Payne called the numbers on voting against Trump "That's devastating." 2

Republicans see the problem too. Republican strategist Charlie Gerow told Reuters "The enthusiasm has to be ginned up among Republicans". He expects the gap to narrow 1.

Older voters and what comes next

Voters 50 and older have long leaned Republican. In the Reuters/Ipsos poll, Republicans led among them only 44% to 42%. In December, their lead was 8 points 1.

Polls are a snapshot, not a forecast. Marist found Democrats ahead by 12 points in September 2018, and the lead had narrowed to 6 points by its final poll before that election 2. Also, 13% of Trump voters in the Reuters/Ipsos poll were unsure who to back for Congress, compared with 7% of Harris voters 1.

That matters because turnout decides midterms. If Democrats and independents show up in larger numbers than Trump's own voters, the president's decision to make the race about himself could cost his party seats. The result will come down to who actually votes on Nov. 3.

The Record

  1. PBS News/NPR/Marist poll finishes surveying: 45% of voters say they are mainly voting against Trump, 24% for him 2.
  2. Reuters/Ipsos reports 48% of Harris voters and 30% of Trump voters are very enthusiastic about voting 1.
  3. Midterm elections are scheduled 1.

Sources

  1. Reuters (via The Star), “Trump voters are not pumped about voting in the midterms, Reuters/Ipsos poll finds” (2026-10-08). thestar.com.my/news/world/2026/10/08/trump-voters-are-not-pu
  2. PBS News, “Democrats hold midterm lead with independents breaking sharply against Trump” (2026-09-23). pbs.org/newshour/politics/democrats-lead-in-new-poll-as-trum

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