Americans also express doubts about the president-elect’s ability to improve the health care system or unite a polarized nation.
A new Gallup poll shows that Americans harbor high hopes for President-elect Donald Trump’s ability to tackle key national issues—particularly border security, economic growth, and public safety—with him earning the highest rating of any incoming president on the issues of controlling illegal immigration and reducing the crime rate.
The poll, conducted nationwide in early December, reveals a nation hopeful for decisive action on key issues like the economy, immigration, and safety—with doubts about Trump’s ability to improve the health care system or unite a polarized nation.
A strong majority (68 percent) of Americans believe Trump will succeed in controlling illegal immigration, the highest share of respondents to express this view in the history of Gallup polling. Smaller majorities expect him to reduce unemployment and enhance safety from terrorism (60 percent each), improve the economy (58 percent), avoid war (55 percent), and cut taxes (54 percent). Also, 51 percent expect Trump will lower crime rates, which is a record score for any incoming president, including Trump in 2016.
Relatively few respondents to Gallup’s poll expect Trump will manage to heal political divisions (33 percent) or improve the quality of the environment (35 percent), with slightly more optimism expressed that he would make the health care system better (40 percent) and improve race relations (41 percent). More optimism was expressed about Trump’s ability to improve education (43 percent), substantially reduce the budget deficit (45 percent), improve conditions for minorities and the poor (46 percent), lower prices (47 percent), and improve the way the federal government works (47 percent).
Public opinion was evenly split on whether Trump will bolster respect for the United States abroad.
Overall, while expectations for Trump’s second term are divided, a slightly greater share of Americans believe Trump is more likely to deliver than disappoint.Gallup also measured American’s expectations for Trump during the 2016 transition period, asking about 16 of the 17 issues rated in the latest poll—with the exception of reducing prices. The comparison reveals some notable shifts in public opinion.
A far larger share of Americans now (55 percent) believe Trump will keep the nation out of war, a sharp increase of 17 percentage points compared to 2016, when a comparable majority (57 percent) expressed doubt about his ability to do so. This shift could reflect his record of starting “no new wars” during his first term, along with his pledge to end the Russia–Ukraine conflict quickly after being sworn into office for the second time on Jan. 20.
Expectations for Trump’s ability to control illegal immigration have also increased by nine points since 2016, while confidence in his ability to reduce crime has risen by eight points. Similarly, there has been a six-point increase in optimism about Trump improving race relations, though overall predictions in this area remain more negative than positive.
Conversely, public confidence in Trump’s capacity to improve health care and education has declined significantly, with optimism dropping 12 and 10 points, respectively. Whereas majorities of Americans were hopeful about these issues in 2016, the reverse is true today. Additionally, expectations for Trump to heal political divisions have fallen by six points to a low of 33 percent.
Americans’ expectations for nine other policy areas measured in both years have remained relatively stable.
The Trump administration-related Gallup polls follow a survey on Americans’ expectations for 2025 more generally.
The earlier Gallup poll found that a majority of respondents expect positive changes in a number of key areas during Trump’s first year in office, including improved employment prospects, inflation at reasonable levels, and the United States becoming more powerful. However, optimism in these areas was tempered by expectations for overall economic difficulty, international strife, and domestic political conflict.