Trump approval rating map shows America's most divided states
By: Sam Stevenson and Matthew Robinson Share (Newsweek)
Trump's turn toward TEA Party priorities has damaged Trump, the MAGA brand, and down ballot Republicans. The TEA Party has only been popular among think tanks, political pundits, business globalists, and those vested in selling out the United States. The TEA Party wasn't that popular among rank & file Republicans.
Republican candidates may need to push back against Trump to remain competitive. Republicans who focus on policy rather than culture war grievances will also have a competitive edge.
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
A state-by-state map of President Donald Trump's latest approval ratings paints a picture of a divided America.
Civiqs polling data, comprising more than 70,000 responses from registered voters, provides an in-depth look at where America's political divisions are most pronounced.
Newsweek contacted the White House via email outside of normal business hours for comment.
Why It Matters
The divide in Trump's approval ratings across the United States highlights deeply entrenched partisan lines and identifies states where swing voters may play a pivotal role in future elections.
States with nearly even splits in opinion are particularly significant ahead of the 2026 midterms, as small changes in sentiment could determine which party wins key races and which policies prevail.
As public opinion remains sharply segmented by geography, these closely divided states—often overlapping with electoral battlegrounds—will likely see intensified campaign efforts and policy targeting by both parties.
(The map is interactive in the seed article.)
What To Know
According to Civiqs polling conducted between January 20 and December 2, 2025, the net approval ratings for Trump vary widely from state to state.
Civiqs's data highlights which U.S. states are the most split when answering the question: "Do you approve or disapprove of the way Donald Trump is handling his job as president?"
Trump's net approval rating represents the difference between those who approve and those who disapprove of the president's job performance in each state.
The states considered most divided have net approval ratings closest to zero, indicating that opinion is nearly evenly split between support and opposition.
These include:
- South Carolina : 0 (evenly split)
- Missouri : +2
- Louisiana : +3
- Indiana : +4
- Tennessee : +6
- Kansas : +6
- Florida : −8
- Texas : −8
- Alaska : −7
The small margins in these states—the gap between approval and disapproval of Trump is within single digits—make them the most closely contested in terms of public opinion.
At the extremes, Wyoming has the highest net approval for Trump at +36, while Hawaii posts the lowest at −55, signaling lopsided partisan divides in those states.
States such as Ohio (−7), North Carolina (−9), Arizona (−12), Wisconsin (−13), Pennsylvania (−15), and Georgia (−17) are also seen as battlegrounds, but their gaps are larger than those listed above.
It follows a New York Times /Siena survey, which found most American voters do not believe the country's political divisions can be overcome.
Problems with the nation's political culture, including polarization and the state of democracy, were named as more urgent issues than immigration, inflation, or crime in the polling of 1,313 registered voters, which was conducted between September 22 and 27 in the wake of prominent MAGA activist Charlie Kirk's murder.
What People Are Saying
Trump supporter Al Heymann, 49, of Jefferson Parish, Louisiana , told The New York Times : "Unfortunately, it feels like you have to pick a side."
"Stuff has gotten out of hand," he added, blaming some in the news media and politicians on all sides for the polarization. "It's just pulling sides apart when we really need to come together to make things happen. But neither side wants to do that."
Lea Smith, a 50-year-old Democrat living in New York , who believes the Trump administration's policies have penalized women and minorities, told The New York Times : "I feel like I'm living in an episode of 'The Twilight Zone'."
Democrat Amber Yang, 37, of Boston , who works in finance, told The New York Times : "It is impossible now to have a policy discussion. There's no consensus on the facts. And when you can't have a conversation, how do you even move forward?"
Republican pollster Kristen Soltis Anderson said earlier this month: "Trump is great at turning out voters. The problem is that he's great at turning out Democrats even when he's not on the ballot."
What Happens Next
The identified divided states—where net approval is closest to zero—are likely to be fiercely contested in the 2026 midterms.
Political strategists from both parties are expected to focus heavily on voter mobilization and persuasion efforts in these areas, given that even minor shifts in public opinion could swing statewide or congressional outcomes.
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Trump has made himself a lame duck by adopting TEA Party politics. The mid-terms will be a referendum on Trump's policies and performance which cannot improve with a TEA Party agenda.
The mid-terms will determine the future of MAGA and the Republican party. The TEA Party has never been popular with voters. The Republican Party won't be the party of Trump and the party of Reagan has been rejected. If MAGA dies then Republicans will need to start over from scratch.
The coming mid-terms will be the end of the beginning for Republicans.
Trump is net negative in every one of the 2024 swing states.
Yes. Doesn't look like defending Trump or running on Trump's record will be competitive. How is that going to shape Democrats' campaign strategy?