CNN Data Expert Gives Democrats a ‘Reality Check’ as Trump’s Polling Numbers Take a Sudden Turn

CNN senior data reporter Harry Enten said Friday that President Donald Trump’s approval ratings are unexpectedly soaring once again after having slipped in the previous month.

As recession fears wane, Trump’s approval rating jumped from -8 points on April 21 to -1 point as of Tuesday, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found.

The president’s net approval rating has also risen from -9 points in late April to its current -6 points, according to Enten’s aggregate polling.

“I think it’s time for a bit of a reality check. We were going into late April, Donald Trump’s approval rating, his approvals seemed to be falling. He seemed to be ‘adios, amigos.’ People were writing his political obituary,” Enten said.

“He is rising from the dead like [Lazarus]. Look at this, hello, Trump’s net approval rating among voters, this is the Reuters/Ipsos polling, look at this.

“In late April, he was eight points underwater, but look at where he was in the most recent poll among voters. He’s up seven points to a -1 point net favorability rating.

“This is not the picture I think a lot of people thought we would be painting in late April.”

“I think a lot of people expected his approval rating to keep dropping. But at least according to Reuters/Ipsos, it is, in fact, rising,” Enten continued.

Time for a reality check… I think some folks thought Trump’s approval rating would keep falling, but it’s rising.

Ipsos has his net approval going from -8 pts to -1 pt with voters. Aggregate has him up higher than late April too & much higher than at this point in term 1. pic.twitter.com/uP0xYvnnnZ

— (((Harry Enten))) (@ForecasterEnten) May 16, 2025

The president’s current -6 net approval rating fares much better than his -15 point net approval rating from May 16, 2017, Enten said, citing his aggregate polling.

“So we see, Donald Trump isn’t just doing better than he was doing in late April of 2025, he’s doing considerably better than he was doing at this point in term number one,” Enten said.

Trump’s approval ratings are rebounding as the public’s views on the economy have improved.

The number of U.S. adults who were “concerned about the stock market dropped from 67 percent in April to 60 percent in May, while those worried about a recession decreased from 76 percent to 69 percent, according to the Reuters/Ipsos poll.

Americans’ approval of Trump has jumped as their worries about a recession are easing.

J.P. Morgan said the chance of a recession has fallen from 60 percent in April to below 50 percent, while Goldman Sachs’s prediction went from 45% in April to 35%.

The president’s approval ratings stumbled in April due to the reciprocal tariffs he placed on foreign countries to return manufacturing to the U.S. and negotiate fairer trade deals.

After implementing a 90-day pause on other nations, the U.S. and China agreed to lower their tariffs by 115 percent while retaining an additional 10 percent, according to a White House fact sheet released Monday.

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