U.S. President Donald Trump's approval ratings have hit new lows, further darkening the Republican Party's prospects for the midterm elections.

According to a poll released on October 18 (local time) by The Washington Post and ABC News, conducted by Ipsos, President Trump's job approval rating stood at 33%.

This is a 4 percentage point drop from a survey in July, marking his lowest rating since the start of his second term.

Respondents who disapprove of President Trump's job performance accounted for 66%, with 52% strongly disapproving.

An NBC News poll released the same day also showed President Trump's approval rating plummeting to a record low of 34%.

Disapproval of President Trump's job performance rose to 66%, among which 51% strongly disapproved.

Previously, a poll released on October 14 by the right-leaning, pro-Republican Fox News showed President Trump's approval rating at 36%, the lowest across both his first and second terms.

In the latest Washington Post-ABC poll asking voters whether they preferred a Democratic-led or Republican-led Congress, 58% chose the Democrats and 39% chose the Republicans.

The 19 percentage point gap between the two parties is about double the figure from a survey a year ago.

Among Democratic voters, 75% said they will definitely vote.

Among Republicans, 75% of MAGA (Make America Great Again) supporters said they will definitely vote, but that figure dropped to 57% among non-MAGA Republicans.

Economic issues, particularly inflation, played the biggest role in President Trump's falling approval ratings.

Disapproval ratings for his economic policies and cost-of-living issues stood at 70% and 77%, respectively.

Approval for his economic policies was a mere 28%, compared to 41% in February of this year and 33% in July.

At the same point in 2018 during the midterm elections of Trump's first term, his economic policy approval rating was 49%.

Forty-eight percent of respondents said their financial situation has worsened since President Trump returned to office.

This is the highest figure recorded in polls conducted by The Washington Post and ABC News of past presidents since 1986.

Among respondents who reported financial hardship, 78% favored the Democratic Party in the congressional elections.

Seventy-one percent of independent voters also favored the Democrats.

In a February survey conducted before the war in Iran began, 71% of respondents said gasoline prices were affordable.

Now, 71% said gasoline prices are unaffordable, showing a shift in perceptions regarding the burden of fuel prices.

A majority of respondents said groceries, healthcare, and household energy costs were unaffordable, and less than 4 in 10 said dining out was affordable.

Regarding the war in Iran, 65% pointed out that it was President Trump's mistake.

Sixty-eight percent also disapproved of the way President Trump treats allies.

Negative responses exceeded a majority regarding his handling of immigration issues and the deportation of undocumented immigrants.

Notably, among respondents who said they voted for President Trump in the 2024 presidential election, 23% did not approve of his overall job performance, 31% opposed his economic management, and 38% criticized his response to inflation.

Many of them are highly likely to skip voting altogether in the midterm elections.

The percentage of respondents who believe President Trump is using his position to enrich himself stood at 66%.

About 80% responded that it was inappropriate for President Trump to want to attach his name to the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.

When asked which party they trust more to handle economic issues, respondents chose the Democratic Party (40%) over the Republican Party (33%).

This is the first time since 2014 that the Democratic Party has held an advantage over Republicans in economic trust in the Washington Post-ABC poll.

The Washington Post analyzed that "while 54% of U.S. adults view the Democratic Party unfavorably, it is perceived as the more trustworthy party on several issues, possibly because an even larger share of Americans, 63%, dislike the Republican Party."

The Washington Post-ABC poll was conducted from October 9 to 13 among 2,545 U.S. adults and weighted based on party affiliation patterns among Americans by the Pew Research Center.

The margin of error is plus or minus 2 percentage points.

The NBC News poll was conducted by SurveyMonkey from September 29 to October 12 among 19,135 adults, with a margin of error of plus or minus 2.6 percentage points.

(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)