President Trump and congressional Republicans are staring down a defection of independent voters less than five months before the midterm elections, which will shape the final two years of Mr. Trump’s term.
It is not that independents are suddenly flocking to Democrats, but they have soured on Republicans. Many independents say their day-to-day economic reality has not improved since Mr. Trump returned to office and Republicans took full control of Washington, leaving this growing cohort feeling that the nation is going off course.
The independent bloc is at a record high. A Gallup survey found that 45% of U.S. adults identified as political independents in 2025, surpassing previous highs and leaving both parties with just 27% identification each. The growth is driven in part by younger generations — Generation X, millennials and Generation Z — who have gravitated toward independent status at higher rates than their predecessors.
“With independents, it is not what you have done for me; it is what will you do for me,” said John McLaughlin, a Trump pollster. “They want to see economic growth. They want to see that their wages can go up and see that they can get a better job.”
Mr. McLaughlin said part of the problem is Democratic obstruction and former Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s refusal to slash interest rates, which he argued has “thrown sand” in the gears of the nation’s economic recovery.
“The Republicans have the ability to get the independents back, and they still have time, but they really need to show signs that they are fighting for them and they have better solutions than Democrats,” he said. “We definitely have to improve among independents, but it can be done.”
Mr. McLaughlin’s latest polling shows 66% of independents think the nation is on the wrong track, compared with 22% who say it is on the right track. On the generic congressional ballot, independents give Democrats a 45% to 26% edge, with 29% undecided; 56% say they disapprove of Mr. Trump and his policies.
The findings give Democrats hope of a political comeback in November, two years after Mr. Trump and other Republicans made inroads with independent voters to win the White House and the U.S. Senate while holding on to a slim House majority.
The economic backdrop is not helping Republicans. Mr. Trump’s party got another dose of bad news this week when data showed the consumer price index rose 4.2% in May from a year earlier — up from 2.4% before the Middle East conflict erupted in February and the fastest pace since April 2023.
With the war in Iran pushing up energy costs and prices across the board, affordability remains the key political issue in midterm election campaigns.
Mr. Trump sounded unfazed this week. He told reporters at the White House on Wednesday that “the numbers were great” and pointed to the strength of the stock market. He said, “I love the inflation,” but added that he was moving more oil through the Middle East and predicted inflation would “come down like a rock” once the Iran war is resolved.
If that happens, it could help Republicans stem the independent drift. For now, however, the numbers remain bleak.
An Economist/YouGov poll conducted June 5-8 echoed some of Mr. McLaughlin’s findings. Just 19% of independents say the country is on the right track, while 64% say it is going the wrong way. Mr. Trump’s approval rating among independents is 23%, with 67% disapproving. On the issues they care about most, the ratings are similarly rough: 20% approve of his handling of the economy, 14% of inflation, 22% of taxes, and 17% of the situation in Iran.
Neither party is winning over the middle. The Democratic Party is viewed favorably by 24% of independents and unfavorably by 58%. The Republican Party fares slightly worse: 20% favorable, 63% unfavorable.
Don Levy, director of the Siena College poll, said independents are frustrated with both parties, but the numbers pose a more immediate problem for Republicans.
In his May survey, among self-described independents, 51% say they would vote for a Democrat for Congress if the election were held today, compared with 33% who would vote Republican — an 18-point Democratic advantage. That is a sharp shift from October 2024, when the generic ballot among independents was nearly even at 48% Democratic, 45% Republican.
Over that same period, Mr. Levy said, the percentage of independents who said they lean Democratic has hovered around 45%. The number who say they lean Republican has plummeted from 42% to 31%.
“That’s a danger sign for Republicans running in any district that is a purple or a swing district,” Mr. Levy said.
The erosion shows up across nearly every major issue.
Independents give Mr. Trump negative marks on the economy, immigration and the Iran war. This is a reversal from before the 2024 election, when a majority trusted him over Vice President Kamala Harris on both the economy and immigration.
“Right now these swing voters are saying they’re not happy,” Mr. Levy said. “It’s not as if independents are more satisfied with the Democrats — they aren’t — but they are unsatisfied with the Republican Party in general.”
Still, Mr. Trump and the Republican-controlled Congress maintain a firm grip on the MAGA base. This is on display in high-profile primaries where Mr. Trump has backed challengers to Republicans he considers disloyal.
Yet among the independent voters who ultimately swing elections, the drift is unmistakable. “Ultimately, they’re the ones who decide,” Mr. Levy said.
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