President Donald Trump's support has fallen among white voters, according to a new poll from The New York Times and Siena College released on Wednesday.
When reached by Newsweek, a White House spokesperson pointed to the president's Truth Social post in which he slammed the poll as producing "fake results."
"Fake and Fraudulent Polling should be, virtually, a criminal offense. As an example, all of the Anti Trump Media that covered me during the 2020 Election showed Polls that were knowingly wrong," Trump wrote on the platform.
Trump's approval has critical implications for Republicans as they work to preserve their majorities in the Senate and House of Representatives in the November 2026 midterms. If Trump's approval continues to drop, that may bode poorly for Republicans who have tied themselves closely to his administration in key races. But if he is popular in November, Republicans may be able to prevent major losses.
White voters have been a cornerstone of Trump's base, as they gave him 57 percent of their vote in the 2024 presidential race. But the new poll from the Times suggests Trump's support among the voter group has dropped after his first year in office.
The poll released on Thursday found that 47 percent of white voters either somewhat or strongly approve of the president's job performance, while 50 percent said they disapprove of Trump.
That marks a notable shift from the previous Times/Siena College poll from September 2025, when 52 percent of white voters approved of Trump and 46 percent disapproved.
The latest poll surveyed 1,625 registered voters from January 12-17, 2026, while the earlier poll surveyed 1,313 registered voters from September 22-27, 2025.
These findings are significant because Trump's "base of white, MAGA voters has kept his approval rating steady, and it is a warning sign that this falling off of support may continue," Robert Y. Shapiro, professor of political science at Columbia University, told Newsweek.
"This could represent just economic disappointment. But I think it also represents the disruption and even chaos in his and his administration's words and deeds," he said, adding that the backlash U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is facing and the president's Greenland threats has also given Republicans in Congress "pause."
Jacob Neiheisel, a professor of political science at the University of Buffalo, told Newsweek he is not "terribly surprised" that Trump's approval would decline among white voters.
"Absent some external event buoying a president's favorability ratings (e.g., Gulf War 1, 9/11), most presidents exhibit declining poll numbers over time," he said. "While demographics that are more favorable to the president, on average, might exhibit some degree of 'stickiness' in terms of their evaluations, I have to think that they too are subject to many of the same forces that can drive down a president's favorability ratings."
Overall, 40 percent of respondents said they approved of Trump's job performance, while 57 percent disapproved of his first year in office, according to the Times poll.
The survey found that 19 percent of Americans believe the economy is the greatest issue facing the country, while 9 percent said inflation and the cost of living remain their top concern.
Twelve percent of respondents said either immigration or immigration enforcement remains their top issue. An additional 12 percent said Trump and Republicans are the most important problem facing the country. Eleven percent cited the state of democracy and corruption as the most important issue.
The poll confirms Republicans are "in trouble" ahead of the midterms, Shapiro said.
"Trump may very likely next year face at least one House of Congress controlled by the Democrats. This will prevent Trump from passing partisan legislation, and the House of Representatives may investigate what they see as the administration's misdeeds," he said.
Other polls have similarly found Trump's approval rating underwater.
The latest survey from YouGov and The Economist found that 57 percent of Americans disapprove of Trump, while 37 percent approve of his job performance. It surveyed 1,722 adults from January 16-19, 2026 and had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.2 percentage points.
An Emerson College poll found that 51 percent of Americans disapprove of Trump, while 43 percent still support his administration. It surveyed 1,000 likely voters from January 17-19, 2026 and had a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
President Donald Trump wrote to Truth Social: "The Times Siena Poll, which is always tremendously negative to me, especially just before the Election of 2024, where I won in a Landslide, will be added to my lawsuit against The Failing New York Times. Our lawyers have demanded that they keep all Records, and how they 'computed' these fake results -- Not just the fact that it was heavily skewed toward Democrats. They will be held fully responsible for all of their Radical Left lies and wrongdoing!"
Jacob Neiheisel, a professor of political science at the University of Buffalo, told Newsweek: "I'd say that the fortunes of the Republican Party in the midterms are directly tied to Trump's approval ratings. As approval of the president goes down, so does the GOP's hopes of retaining control of the House."
Trump's approval rating in polls will continue to be monitored ahead of the midterms later this year. Issues, including the state of the economy, could continue to shape Americans' views of his administration.