Who is the most popular politician in the US? It's not Donald Trump, poll shows

An American journalist has put together data that has revealed who the most popular politician in the United States is, and it’s not Donald Trump.

Published on: Mar 27, 2025, 12:22:30 IST

By Sumanti Sen

Prefer HTon Google

Share via

Copy link

An American journalist has put together data that has revealed who the most popular politician in the United States is, and it’s not Donald Trump. G. Elliott Morris shared on his website that he found the answer by collecting all the questions of YouGov/Economist polls in the last three months that ask voters to reveal how favourably they view prominent political figures or possible 2028 candidates.

“Then I picked out notable figures, and graphed their net favorability rating (the share of adults saying they viewed the person/party favorably minus share saying they viewed the person/party unfavorably) in the most recent result,” said Morris, known for his work on election polling and predictive analytics.

Who is the most popular politician in the US?

The analysis found that Senator Bernie Sanders, and not President Trump, got the #1 spot. 46% of adults said they view Sanders favourably and 39% unfavourably. In fact, Sanders is also net favourable with young people (by nearly 20 points), lower-income voters, moderates, independents, Hispanics, Black voters, and men. He happens to be just two points underwater with white voters.

Morris wrote on his website, “One theory for Sanders’ relative crossover appeal is his emphasis on criticism of the system — something young men in particular shared with him in 2016, and which left them open to the appeal of Trumpism in 2024 (especially post inflation in 2022-2023). Sanders’s campaigning against the neoliberal consensus is persuasive with the many voters (and again, especially young people) that believe has left them behind. Trump was the voice for this cohort in 2024, as Sanders was in the 2016 primary (and to a certain extent in the 2016 general). Maybe Democrats can learn something from that.”

The analysis found that Elon Musk is the most unpopular GOP-aligned major official, and that Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Pete Buttigieg are more popular than Trump and JD Vance.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sumanti Sen
Sumanti Sen covers everything that’s happening in the US, from politics to entertainment, but her expertise lies in covering crime news. She has comprehensively chronicled the Idaho student murders, the Laken Riley and Iryna Zarutska cases, and the killing of Charlie Kirk, among other incidents. Over the years, she has interviewed several victims/families of victims of crimes seeking justice. She digs up stories that might otherwise remain unheard, and does her bit to ensure that victims and survivors’ voices are heard. Sumanti’s many years of experience also include interviews with Hamas attack survivors and mental health experts, among others. Her coverage of the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel and interviews with survivors of the tragedy, coupled with her other works including the Titan submersible coverage, earned her the Digi Journo of the Quarter award during her first year at Hindustan Times. Sumanti actively tracks missing person cases in the United States, and peruses Reddit and other social media platforms to bring to light cases that frequently elude public attention. She has extensively covered the disappearances of Nancy Guthrie, Thomas Medlin, Beau Mann, and Sudiksha Konanki, among others. When not at work, you will either find her with her novels, or with her beloved rescue pooches.Read More

Stay updated with US News covering politics, crime, weather, local events, and sports highlights. Get the latest on Donald Trump and American politics along with Horoscope 2026.