Public opinion polling agency Gallup confirmed it will stop tracking presidential approval ratings after nearly nine decades of continuous use, as reported by The Guardian. This is one of the most cited measures of public opinion in the US, so seeing the gold standard vanish feels like we’re losing an important piece of American history. For generations, this poll provided a crucial snapshot of how the country felt about its leadership, but now that barometer is gone.
Gallup insists this monumental decision has nothing to do with the intense political scrutiny surrounding recent polling, especially the public lambasting and legal threats from President Trump. The company stated on Wednesday that the move was “solely based on Gallup’s research goals and priorities” and simply “reflects an evolution in how Gallup focuses its public research and thought leadership.”
A spokesperson for the agency stressed that their core focus remains on “long-term, methodologically sound research on issues and conditions that shape people’s lives.” They plan to continue this work through their existing channels, including the Gallup Poll Social Series, the World Poll, the Gallup Quarterly Business Review, and their portfolio of US and global research.
It’s definitely tough to separate this announcement from the current political climate, however
The Gallup Presidential Approval Rating has been a pivotal measure of public opinion since Harry Truman was in office. The data has provided truly amazing historical insights, including the time George W Bush hit a whopping 90% approval rating in the days immediately following the September 11 attacks. You can’t deny the historical power that kind of data holds.
President Trump has been incredibly diligent, even “dogged,” in his pursuit against polling organizations and media companies that portray him negatively. He has closely scrutinized polling of his popularity and publicly threatened legal action against those who report unfavorable numbers.
President Trump’s second term has seen some tough numbers in the polls. While he started his term with an approval rating of 47%, it fell to 36% by December, which is actually among the lowest figures the company had ever recorded for a sitting president. After a major poll released in January found the president’s approval rating had dropped three percentage points since September 2025, falling to 40%, President Trump threatened to expand a pre-existing defamation lawsuit.
In a post on social media, the president specifically stated that the poll, which he claimed was “always tremendously negative to me,” would be added to his ongoing lawsuit against the media company that ran the numbers. He was convinced the poll was skewed, especially given that he felt he had won the 2024 election “in a Landslide.”
The media outlet running the poll quickly defended its work, stressing that its methodology is rigorous and widely cited by researchers. A spokesperson for the company stated clearly that “President Trump likes polls that appear favorable to him and dislikes polls that do not. But whether a poll is good or bad for the president has no bearing on our methodology.”
Published: Feb 12, 2026 01:00 pm