Want to see the MOST IMPORTANT poll numbers in politics right now?

Ok! Here’s the Quinnipiac University poll’s 5-year trend line on how voters believe Donald Trump is handling the economy:

January 2020: 57% approve/ 38% disapprove (+19)

February 2025: 44% approve/ 48% disapprove (-4)

October 2025: 38% approve/ 57% disapprove (-19)

Stunning!

Even after Trump lost the 2020 election, nearly 6 in 10 Americans thought he had done well with the economy!

And, it’s not too much to conclude that Trump won the 2024 election on those lingering good feelings about how he handled the economy.

In 2024 exit polling, one in three voters said the economy was the most important issue in deciding who to vote for. Among that group, Trump beat Kamala Harris 81% to 18%. Not a typo! In a (relatively) close election, Trump won economy voters by 63(!!!) points.

Which is proof, I think, that the 2024 election was, ultimately, about which of the two candidates voters thought would lower inflation and bring down the prices of everyday goods.

Here’s the problem for Trump: He hasn’t done it. Or, at least, the public doesn’t think he has done it. Between January 2020 and today, Trump’s approval on the economy has swung a whopping 38 points to the negative on his handling of the economy. That’s incredible.

It’s also a MASSIVE political opportunity for Democrats. What those poll numbers tell me is that if the 2026 election is a referendum on how Trump had done with the economy, Democrats will win. And likely win big.