Poll reveals record low support for Congress
FILE-Representatives of the 119th Congress are sworn in during the first day of session in the House Chamber of the U.S. Capitol Building on January 03, 2025 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Congress garnered little support from Americans based on data from the latest poll from Gallup.
The analytics and advisory company found that only 10% of respondents approve of the job performance of Congress, compared to 86% who disapprove.
Gallup’s new poll was conducted between April 1–15 and included telephone interviews conducted by ReconMR April 1-15, 2026, with a random sample of 1,001 adults, aged 18 and older, living in all 50 U.S. states and Washington, D.C.
RELATED: New poll shows how Americans feel about Congress, Trump during government shutdown
Some respondents' discontent with Congress in the poll comes amid tensions over the ongoing U.S. conflict with Iran, soaring gas prices, and lawmakers not passing key pieces of legislation like the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, which passed the House in 2025 and would require citizenship documentation to register to vote.
Congress’ approval has dipped since 2025
Dig deeper:
Gallup reveals that Americans’ approval of Congress started at 17% in January 2025, rose to 29% after President Donald Trump returned to the White House, and peaked at 31% in March 2025.
Meanwhile, approval dropped substantially during and after the federal government shutdown in the U.S. that started on Oct. 1, 2025, where approval ratings have been in the low-to-mid teens since then.
But the survey noted that disapproval was 76% at the start of the Congress and dropped to a low of 63% in spring 2025 before climbing steadily to its current 86% rate.
According to the Gallup poll, the GOP has fueled most of the recent dip, with a steep decline in their latest approval rating of Congress after soaring to 63% in March 2025.
Conversely, Democrats rated the current Congress unfavorably, and independents’ opinions have been stable at a low level. Currently, 11% of independents and 3% of Democrats approve of Congress’ job performance.
The Source: Information for this story was provided by a Gallup poll which used telephone interviews conducted by ReconMR April 1–15, 2026, with a random sample of 1,001 adults, aged 18 and older, living in all 50 U.S. states and Washington, D.C. This story was reported from Washington, D.C.