Fox News Poll: 56% doubt White House’s competence at managing government

A 56% majority of voters say the Trump administration has not been competent at managing the federal government, according to a Fox News poll released Wednesday. Two in 10 Republicans join most independents (7 in 10) and Democrats (9 in 10) in holding that view, while 4 in 10 non-MAGA Republicans also agree.

Overall, 43% think the White House has been competent at running the government. 

Those numbers aren’t unusual. Trump’s marks are in line with those for the Obama administration in 2015, when a high of 44% said it was competent, and the most recent ratings for the Biden administration, when 38% said it was competent in 2022 (that’s down from 51% competent in 2021). 

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“It may come as cold comfort to the White House, but there’s a tendency for voters to be harsh toward all presidents,” says Republican pollster Daron Shaw, who helps conduct Fox News polls with Democrat Chris Anderson. “The president’s numbers show how difficult it is to win independents and out-partisans.”

President Trump receives negative job ratings for his handling of immigration (46% approve, 54% disapprove), China (42-57), foreign policy (40-60), Iran (37-63), the economy (34-66), government spending (33-67), and inflation (28-72). His only positive rating is on border security (53-47).

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Most of those marks are lower than Trump’s overall job performance as president: 42% of voters approve, while 58% disapprove. Last month, it was 41-59 (March 20-23, 2026).

Also, some top cabinet officials receive negative ratings. Vice President Vance’s job rating is underwater by 11 percentage points (44% approve, 55% disapprove), while Secretary of State Rubio’s is negative by 12 points (44-56) and Secretary of Defense Hegseth’s is negative by 17 (41-58).

Among Republicans, more approve of Vance’s job performance (84%) than Rubio’s (77%) or Hegseth’s (76%). Each of their ratings is at least 20 points higher among MAGA Republicans than non-MAGA Republicans. Vance’s approval is higher than Rubio’s and Hegseth’s mostly because of support among MAGA Republicans, who rate Vance about 10 points higher.

The new survey also asks voters to rate the president on several traits, and again the findings are more negative than positive. More than half say Trump doesn’t care about people like them and lacks the appropriate judgment, mental soundness, and temperament to serve effectively as the country’s leader.

The 60% who think Trump lacks the right temperament is an increase in negative views since just before the 2024 election when 52% felt that way. However, it’s roughly the same as during most of his 2016 presidential campaign.

While a majority of 57% believe the president lacks the right judgment, some 42% think he has it — that’s unchanged compared to 2023 and an improvement from a low of 36% in 2016. 

More than 6 in 10 say Trump doesn’t care about people like them. The 37% who say he cares is down from a high of 44% in 2024. 

Another 55% say Trump does not have the mental soundness to serve. That’s up 7 points since late 2024 and near the high of 56% in 2023. In comparison, 65% said former President Biden lacked the mental soundness to be president around the time he dropped his re-election campaign in July 2024.

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Among Democrats, 9 in 10 or more say Trump lacks the traits necessary to serve as president effectively. Conversely, at least 9 in 10 MAGA Republicans think he possesses the right qualities, but that drops to about 6 in 10 or fewer among non-MAGA Republicans. Independents are more likely to describe Trump as lacking judgment, temperament, mental soundness, and empathy.

Conducted April 17-20, 2026, under the direction of Beacon Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R), this Fox News survey includes interviews with a sample of 1,001 registered voters randomly selected from a national voter file. Respondents spoke with live interviewers on landlines (116) and cellphones (635) or completed the survey online after receiving a text (250). Results based on the full sample have a margin of sampling error of ±3 percentage points. Sampling error for results among subgroups is higher. In addition to sampling error, question wording and order can influence results. Weights are generally applied to age, race, education, and area variables to ensure the demographics are representative of the registered voter population. Sources for developing weight targets include the most recent American Community Survey, Fox News Voter Analysis, and voter file data.

Fox News’ Victoria Balara contributed to this report.