Poll: Pocketbook Pessimists
This Navigator Research report covers Americans who rate the economy negatively or are unsure but don’t yet blame Trump and Republicans in Congress.
Pocketbook Pessimists
In a survey Navigator research conducted earlier this month, a group of nearly one-third of Americans said they are either unsure or pessimistic about the economy (31%), but they do not yet blame President Trump and Republicans in Congress for costs rising.
This group, which Navigator is referring to as “pocketbook pessimists,” leans independent (52% of independents fit into this category) and 37% are between the ages of 18 and 44.
This group is less likely to say politics are important to their identity (only 52% said they were, compared to 66% of all voters). Half say they voted for Trump in 2024 (50%), compared with 29% who say they voted for Harris, and 6% who say they voted for somebody else. 17% say they did not vote at all.
Feelings About Trump, Democrats, And The Economy
While pocketbook pessimists are reluctant to blame Trump for their economic pain, they’re still largely negative on him. Trump has an overall net -8 approval with pocketbook pessimists, slightly better than the net -14 approval he has with Americans overall.
Pocketbook pessimists have a net -14 approval of Trump’s handling of the economy and give him an average grade between a C- and a D+ on the economy, about the same grade he got from all Americans.
Tariffs have a net -34 favorability rating among this group, while the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has a net +25 rating among them.
Pocketbook pessimists feel crushed by the economy. 77% say their costs are going up (compared to 72% of Americans overall). Similarly, they are slightly more likely than Americans overall to say the cost of groceries (86% vs. 81%), housing (77% vs. 70%), and utilities (81% vs. 74%) are going up. 70% also say health care costs are rising.
Pocketbook pessimists blame policies from Trump and Republicans in Congress for rising costs. A majority say they blame Trump’s tariffs for raising their costs (54%), 42% say they blame Republicans’ cuts to SNAP and Medicaid, and 41% say they blame Republicans’ inaction on ACA subsidies for their rising costs.
However, this group doesn’t necessarily trust Democrats more. On many issues including taxes (39%) and inflation and the cost of living (36%), a plurality say they trust neither party on the issue.
Media Habits
Pocketbook pessimists are evenly split between Passive and Active News Consumers. 45% say they turn to social media for news (compared to 40% of Americans overall). 58% say they use TikTok multiple times a day (compared to 52% of all Americans).
