President Donald Trump argued this week that voters frustrated with Republicans in Congress are not angry with him personally, even as his own approval rating sits at or near the lowest point of his second term.

"They're not angry at me. But they are angry at Republicans," Trump told Punchbowl News in an interview published Friday.

Trump said he does not need to campaign for Republican candidates because he already won his own election.

"I didn't have to be away in Nevada yesterday, I didn't have to be in Los Angeles yesterday making speeches," he said. "I didn't have to be supporting all the people. You know, I have a busy schedule. I said to somebody, 'I won. I'm not campaigning.'"

Asked whether his supporters would turn out for Republicans without him on the ballot, he replied: "The question is...if I don't run, will those people go out and vote? And that's the one thing I can't tell you."

Trump said he would encourage his supporters to vote but argued that "a lot of them are angry at Republicans."

Polling released in the days around the interview shows that Trump's own standing has fallen in step with, not clearly better than, the party he leads.

What Polls Show

Recent polling shows Trump's approval rating stuck in the low to mid 30s, with disapproval consistently outweighing approval. A Quinnipiac University poll conducted July 23-27 found that 32 percent of voters approved of his performance, while 58 percent disapproved. An AP-NORC poll conducted during the same period showed him at 33 percent approval and 66 percent disapproval, while a CNN/SSRS poll fielded July 23-27 found 34 percent approval and 66 percent disapproval. A Marquette Law School poll conducted July 22-29 showed a slightly narrower gap, with 40 percent approving and 60 percent disapproving.

The erosion has also reached issues that have traditionally benefited Republicans. A Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted July 29-August 3 put Trump's approval rating at 35 percent, down from 37 percent the previous month, while finding that Democrats had gained ground on the economy.

Thirty-seven percent of registered voters said Democrats had a better approach to handling the economy, marking the first time in nearly a decade that Democrats have led Republicans on the issue in Reuters/Ipsos polling, according to Reuters.

Republicans maintained an advantage on the economy through much of Trump's first term, Joe Biden's presidency and the early months of Trump's second term, before that edge disappeared as economic concerns grew and gas prices rose following U.S. strikes on Iran.

Polling Averages Show Trump's Approval at Lowest Point

The polling average maintained by Silver Bulletin, the newsletter run by statistician Nate Silver, put Trump's approval rating at 38.2 percent and his disapproval rating at 58.4 percent as of August 7, for a net rating of -20.2. The figure marked a second-term low, according to the tracker, and represented a sharp decline from the same point in Trump's first term, when his net approval stood about 9 points higher at -11.3.

The Economist's YouGov polling tracker, last updated August 4, showed Trump with a net approval rating of -25, with 35 percent of respondents approving of his performance and 60 percent disapproving. The tracker attributed part of the decline to the administration's resumption of strikes on Iran in mid-July, a conflict that 60 percent of respondents said was costing the government too much money.

The New York Times' polling tracker, which averages daily surveys from dozens of organizations since Inauguration Day in January 2025, put Trump's approval rating at 38 percent and disapproval at 59 percent as of August 7. The tracker shows disapproval rising steadily since the spring, with notable increases following the passage of Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act, the start of the 76-day partial government shutdown and the U.S.-Israel attack on Iran.

Over the same period, Trump's approval rating has fallen from roughly 50 percent at the beginning of his term to below 40 percent.

Trump Versus His Own Party

Trump has argued that voters distinguish between him and congressional Republicans, but polling numbers suggest the gap is narrow.

The RealClearPolling average of Trump's favorability shows him at 40.6 percent favorable and 56.0 percent unfavorable, a net of -15.4 points. The Republican Party's favorability average is close behind, at 38.5 percent favorable and 55.1 percent unfavorable, a net of -16.6 points.

Yet, Republican struggles in the polls have not translated into a clear advantage for Democrats. The RealClearPolling average of Democratic Party favorability shows the party with a net rating of negative 17.1 points, with 37.8 percent viewing it favorably and 54.9 percent unfavorably. Analysts have long argued that voters' dissatisfaction with one party does not necessarily mean they are embracing the other.

Stakes for November

Republicans are defending narrow majorities in the House and Senate in the November 3 midterm elections. Of the 435 House seats, only a few dozen are considered competitive, along with roughly eight Senate seats.

Historically, the party in the White House loses seats in the midterms, so Democrats are optimistic about their chances of reclaiming a House majority. But their Senate map is tougher. Republicans currently hold a 53-47 majority in the Senate, and Democrats have few easy targets this year and must win seats in states that backed Trump by double digits in 2024 to flip the Senate.

A CNN/SSRS poll found Democrats leading Republicans on the generic congressional ballot by 8 points among registered voters, with Democrats also holding a 20-point advantage among voters who describe themselves as extremely motivated to vote. The Decision Desk HQ polling average has Democrats ahead by more than 6 points.

Trump, who will not appear on any ballot in November, has said that the central question for Republicans is whether his supporters turn out without him at the top of the ticket.

"I'm going to ask them to," he told Punchbowl News.

Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Jason Lemon and Dave Siminoff.