WASHINGTON, D.C. (April 8, 2025) – Cygnal, one of the nation’s fastest growing and most accurate private polling firms, released the following National Voter Trends (NVT) poll (conducted April 1-3) of 1,500 likely general election voters.
“Democrats are making a lot of noise right now, but our latest national data shows they continue to be on the wrong side of issues where voters prefer the approach by Trump and Republicans,” said Pollster and Cygnal President, Brent Buchanan. “When you have nearly a quarter of Democrats refusing to say people who are here illegally as not having broken any U.S. law, or the 52 percent who support federal judges having power to overturn executive actions and laws, it shouldn’t be any wonder congressional Democrats continue to be 19 percent under water with Independents or why 42 percent of swing voters and 51 percent of parents prefer a Republican candidate in the upcoming midterms.”
“While voters have mixed views on tariffs as a singular concept, Trump’s image is holding steady and support among his base, especially on tariffs, remains strong,” said Buchanan. “Even among Republicans who are unsure about tariffs, they’re willing to trust Trump’s lead. But as tariffs are top of mind, beliefs about waste, fraud, and inefficiencies in government align with much of what DOGE has exposed. Yet 49 percent of Democrats say there is no impact on critical programs like Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid as a result of fraud or waste. What voters see are Democrats in denial and Republicans taking action.”
Here are Buchanan’s top takeaways:
Trump Holds Steady: the President’s job approval remains steady at 47 percent, unchanged from March. He has gained some ground among Independents to counterbalance some losses among college-educated women and those making over six figures. Trump has more than held his gains with Hispanic men – eliciting 54% approval.
Dems Losing More Ground: voters view Democrats less favorably than congressional Republicans by 4 percent and Democrats have seen a net negative 19 percent shift among Independent voters. The –15 net negative image (40% fav / 55% unfav) represents a new low for the party.
On Tariffs: voters’ views on the impact of tariffs are mixed. Among Republicans, 55 percent believe the tariffs are needed to balance-out international trade, while a quarter (25%) are unsure about tariffs, but they trust President Trump’s leadership on the issue. Overall, 50 percent of voters believe the tariffs will raise the cost of goods and prolong inflation. Yet, optimism about the direction of country (44% right track) remains steady, showing voters aren’t tying the tariff issues to how the country is doing.
Illegals are Illegal: nearly one-in-four Democrats do not believe people who have entered the United States without legal permission have broken the law, while 79 percent of Hispanic voters say those individuals have broken the law. Contrary to the gaslighting of some Democratic politicians, more than three quarters (77%) of all voters also believe people who are in the U.S. without permission have broken our laws by entering without legal permission.
DOGE Waste: 43 percent of voters have a favorable view of DOGE, while nearly two-in-three (65%) believe that widespread waste, fraud, and inefficiencies impact the quality of critical benefits like Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. But Democrats (49%) remain out of touch saying there is no impact on these services by waste and fraud, even when older Americans (F 55+ 45%; M 55+ 53%) who are more likely to receive the benefits say the opposite.
Partisan Judges: Democrats (47%) were less likely than Republicans (56%) and Independents (55%) to think judges were influenced by their party affiliation. Overall, 52 percent think judges are influenced a lot by partisan affiliations and 51 percent oppose federal judges overturning laws and executive actions they don’t agree with. Hispanic voters (56% oppose) are most opposed to the judicial activism that’s taken place in Trump 2.0. Apparently, they don’t seem to think as much of MS-13 or TdA as liberal judges.
Levels of Gov’t Approval: mayors, township/village presidents have the highest job approval (59%) compared to other elected officials with Members of Congress (55%) coming in second. Republicans (63%) are more likely to approve of their Member of Congress while Independents disapprove more strongly of officials across all levels of government.
Separate But (not) Equal: a plurality (42%) of voters said the legislative branch should have the most influence in setting national policy, but Republicans differ with 56 percent preferring the President to set policies. Forty percent of swing voters prefer the legislative branch.