Recent figures from the Silver Bulletin reveal a marked uptick in public disapproval of the president. According to the polling aggregator, dissent toward Donald Trump has climbed to its highest level this week.
This increase comes even though overall approval had appeared to stabilize after months of decline in the same polling tracker.
Newsweek contacted the White House via email. White House spokesman Kush Desai told Newsweek last week: “The Trump administration remains laser-focused on continuing to cool inflation, accelerate economic growth, secure our border, and mass deport criminal illegal aliens.”
Nate Silver’s Silver Bulletin average placed Trump’s net approval at –13.7 points as of February 9, 2026, and noted that the share of Americans who strongly disapprove surpassed 46 percent for the first time, signaling persistent political headwinds for the White House and Republicans in a key midterm year.
Senior elections analyst Eli McKown–Dawson, writing for the Silver Bulletin, observed that the net figure inched up from –14.6 to –13.7 over the previous week.
He attributed this modest gain largely to a handful of polls showing more favorable results, including TIPP at –11, Harvard/HarrisX at –6 and an outlier survey from InsiderAdvantage that recorded Trump at +1.
Yet the broader picture remains concerning: the proportion of Americans who strongly disapprove has set a new high above 46 percent, and Trump’s current –13.7 net rating trails President Joe Biden’s –12.2 at the same stage of his term.
Aggregated trackers underscore the depth of this disapproval. CNN’s Poll of Polls, updated through February 5, 2026, shows Trump at 39 percent approval and 59 percent disapproval (–20 net). Meanwhile, Rasmussen’s daily tracker puts him at 42 percent approval and 57 percent disapproval (–15 net).
Despite a temporary uptick in some releases, Silver has warned that Trump’s approval rating could deteriorate further as polls reflect the fallout from recent controversies. While a few surveys this week showed modestly stronger numbers for Trump, the overall trend remains negative.
McKown–Dawson wrote: “After a consistent downward trend, Donald Trump’s approval rating has leveled out and somewhat improved this week. Today, it’s up to -13.7 on net, compared to -14.6 one week ago.
“Even still, the share of Americans who strongly disapprove of Trump broke 46 percent for the first time yesterday.”
Kush Desai, White House spokesman, in an earlier statement to Newsweek: “Nearly 80 million Americans gave President Trump a resounding Election Day mandate to end Joe Biden’s economic disaster and immigration crisis. The Trump administration remains laser-focused on continuing to cool inflation, accelerate economic growth, secure our border and mass deport criminal illegal aliens.”
Trump on Truth Social last week: “The highest Poll Numbers I have ever received. Obviously, people like a strong and powerful Country, with the best economy, EVER!”
With the share of strong disapproval at fresh highs—and CNN’s measure placing Trump 20 points underwater—the president faces significant challenges as 2026 progresses.
