Trump’s Approval Hits Record Low. Democrats See Largest Gap With GOP of the Election Cycle.

President Donald Trump's approval rating has fallen to 31%, the lowest recorded in either of his presidential terms, as frustration over gasoline prices and the economy threatens Republicans' congressional majorities two weeks before the November 3 midterm elections.

A new Reuters/Ipsos survey also showed Democrats expanding their advantage among registered voters. Asked which party they would support if congressional elections were held today, 47% chose Democrats, and 35% selected Republicans.

That 12-point lead was the largest Democratic advantage measured during the current election cycle. The findings put pressure on Republican candidates defending their party's control of Washington.

Losing either the House of Representatives or the Senate would give Democrats greater power to challenge Trump's priorities and complicate his legislative agenda during the final two years of his presidency.

Trump's approval slipped one percentage point from the Reuters/Ipsos survey conducted two weeks earlier. That movement alone falls within the latest poll's reported margin of error, making the broader pattern of dissatisfaction more revealing than the single-point decline.

The congressional numbers showed a larger change. Democrats previously led Republicans by seven points, 44% to 37%. In the latest survey, Democratic support increased three points while Republican support fell two, widening the gap by five percentage points.

Women accounted for much of the deterioration in Republican congressional support, according to Reuters. Half of female registered voters said they would choose a Democratic candidate, compared with 32% who favored a Republican, an 18-point difference.

Men also preferred Democrats, although by a narrower margin. The results showed Republicans trailing among both groups, with women providing Democrats a particularly substantial advantage as campaigns entered their closing stretch.

Economic dissatisfaction extended into Trump's own party. Overall, 68% of Americans disapproved of his handling of the economy, including 37% of self-identified Republicans. That finding showed that criticism of his economic performance reached beyond voters already aligned against him.

Democrats also held an advantage when respondents were asked which party would better manage the economy. Forty percent selected Democrats, compared with 33% who chose Republicans, giving Democrats a seven-point edge on an issue affecting household budgets.

Trump's standing has weakened since he ordered military strikes against Iran alongside Israel in February, Reuters reported. The resulting war sent gasoline prices higher, increasing pressure on household finances and adding an economic cost to the overseas conflict.

The survey captured that strain shortly before voters decide which party will control Congress. However, its findings do not establish how many respondents changed their political preferences specifically because of gasoline prices or the war. The Democratic lead also comes with the important limitation that a national congressional preference survey cannot predict individual election results.

The question, commonly called the generic congressional ballot, measures which party voters favor nationwide. Control of Congress depends on separate House district and statewide Senate contests, where candidate strength, turnout and local political conditions can produce different outcomes.

Republicans retain structural advantages in some of those contests, Reuters noted. A double-digit national polling deficit therefore does not translate automatically into Democratic control of either chamber.

The online survey included 1,679 U.S. adults, of whom 1,279 were registered voters. The reported margin of error was two percentage points for the full sample and three points for registered voters.