President Donald Trump will address a joint session of Congress on Tuesday, where he is expected to speak on the first year of his second term, report on the state of the union and lay out his plans ahead. He ends the year with major policy actions behind him, but new polling by Reuters shows that many Americans are increasingly uneasy about his leadership style and behaviour.
A new Reuters/Ipsos poll found that 61 percent of Americans believe Trump has “become erratic with age.” That includes 89 percent of Democrats, 64 percent of independents and 30 percent of Republicans. The six-day survey ended on Monday, just before his annual State of the Union address, which follows weeks of public criticism from the president directed at lawmakers and judges.
Approval ratings continue to slide
Trump’s overall approval rating has remained fairly steady in recent months but is much lower than when he began his second term. Around 40 percent of Americans currently approve of his performance. That is slightly higher than earlier this month but down from 47 percent when he first returned to office. Since April, his approval has stayed within a narrow range near its current level.
Other polls show similar declines. A recent CNN survey found his approval at 36 percent, down 11 points from last year. Polls from The Washington Post/ABC/Ipsos and NPR/PBS/Marist found that 39 percent of Americans approve of how he is handling the presidency, down six points from shortly after he took office. According to the Decision Desk HQ polling average, Trump’s approval hovered around 50 percent early in 2025 and now sits just under 42 percent.
It is common for presidents to lose support during their first year. In CNN’s polling, former President Joe Biden saw his approval fall 10 points in his first year, from 51 percent to 41 percent, ahead of his first address to Congress.
Concerns grow over mental sharpness
The Reuters/Ipsos poll also found that only 45 percent of Americans describe Trump as “mentally sharp and able to deal with challenges,” down from 54 percent in September 2023. Among Republicans, 81 percent still view him as mentally sharp, little changed from the earlier survey. Among Democrats, that number has dropped to 19 percent from 29 percent. Among independents, it has fallen sharply to 36 percent from 53 percent in 2023.
Trump returned to office in January 2025 at age 78, becoming the oldest president on inauguration day in US history. He will turn 80 in June and is on track to surpass Biden’s age record. Age was also a major issue in the 2024 election, when critics argued that Biden had lost mental sharpness during his presidency. Biden left office at age 82.
The concern about age extends beyond Trump. The poll found that 79 percent of Americans believe elected officials in Washington are too old to represent most Americans. The average age in the US Senate is about 64, and in the House of Representatives it is 58. Even within the Democratic Party, 58 percent of respondents said Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer, who is 75, is too old to serve in government.
Young voters and independents pull back
Trump’s approval has fallen across many groups, but the biggest drop has come from young voters. CNN’s latest poll shows that support among adults ages 18 to 34 has declined 16 points over the past year, from 41 percent to 25 percent. Among those ages 35 to 49, approval has dropped 14 points to 35 percent. Among seniors, support has fallen 11 points, from 53 percent to 42 percent. Adults ages 50 to 64 are the only group that shows no statistically significant change.
The NPR/PBS/Marist poll found similar patterns. Among adults ages 18 to 29, Trump’s approval stands at 30 percent, down 10 points from last year. Approval has declined more modestly among older age groups but remains lower overall.
Independents have also moved away from the president. CNN found that support among independents dropped 17 points in a year, from 43 percent to 26 percent. Republican approval dipped slightly to 82 percent, while Democratic approval stands at just 5 percent. NPR’s polling shows similar trends, with small declines among Republicans and Democrats but softer support among independents.
Questions emerge over priorities and authority
Beyond concerns about age and temperament, Americans are questioning Trump’s priorities and actions. CNN’s survey found that fewer than one-third of respondents believe he has the right priorities for the country, a 13-point drop from last February. More than two-thirds say he has not paid enough attention to the nation’s most important problems, up from 55 percent a year ago.
In the latest Washington Post/ABC/Ipsos poll, only 33 percent of Americans say Trump has acted within his authority as president, down from 40 percent last February. Meanwhile, 65 percent say he has gone beyond his authority, up from 57 percent.
Since returning to office, Trump has introduced sweeping tariffs on imports from dozens of countries and deployed masked federal agents across the country to crack down on unauthorized immigration. He has often taken an angry tone in public remarks. Last week, he said he was “absolutely ashamed” after the conservative-leaning Supreme Court struck down several of his tariffs as illegal. He later reinstated new tariffs under a different legal authority. In November, he criticized Democratic lawmakers who urged members of the military to refuse illegal orders, calling them traitors who could face execution.