President Donald Trump’s approval rating has fallen to its lowest level since he took office, with Americans disapproving of his performance as commander in chief and handling of some policy issues while largely favoring his work on the economy, a new Wall Street Journal-NBC News poll finds.

Mr. Trump’s job approval rating stood at 38%, a five point drop from September, the poll showed. Over all, 58% said they disapproved of the job Mr. Trump has done.

More than 8 in 10 Republicans continue to approve of Mr. Trump’s job performance. Still, the survey found a dip in his support among political independents—and signs of erosion among some of the president’s core voters.

In particular, his job approval among white women who don’t have a four-year college degree stands at 40%, compared with 54% who disapprove. That is a sharp swing from the previous month, when 50% approved and 46% disapproved.

Fred Yang, a Democratic pollster who conducted the survey with Republican Bill McInturff, said: “I think we could be seeing signs where there’s a little bit of fraying of the Trump base.”

The poll offered some consolation for a White House that is now pushing to pass a tax plan that was one of Mr. Trump’s core campaign promises.


Mr. Trump often highlights the nation’s low unemployment rate and surging stock market, and the message seems to be sinking in. By a five point margin—42% to 37%—Americans in the survey approved of Mr. Trump’s handling of the economy.

Rank-and-file Republicans are still largely lining up behind the president. While 36% of people in the survey viewed Mr. Trump in a positive light, nearly 80% of Republicans or those leaning toward the GOP held a favorable view of the president.

Some 54% of people over all and 13% of Republicans said they held an unfavorable view of the president.

Mr. Trump’s popularity within the party could prove useful as he tries to cement a Republican coalition that will enact his tax plan. Unless he gains Democratic support, Mr. Trump can afford to lose no more than two Republican votes in the Senate if he is to win the first major legislative victory of his tenure.

President Trump continues to bump along with weak job-approval numbers, with a 38% reading in the latest Wall Street Journal/NBC poll. WSJ's Gerald F. Seib digs into what Americans like and dislike about his performance, including on storms, national security and the economy. Photo: AP

The poll comes amid news that the U.S. economy expanded at a 3% annual rate in the third quarter, following 3.1% annual growth in the spring, marking the best six-month stretch in three years. Economic growth has been a bright spot that has helped support the president’s approval rating, pollsters said.


“If the economy weakened, there would be more slide,” Mr. McInturff said.

On foreign-policy matters, Americans in the survey generally gave Mr. Trump poor marks. Some 35% approved of his handling of the role as commander in chief, while 53% disapproved.

By about the same margin, people in the survey disapproved of his approach to North Korea, which has been test-firing missiles and advancing its nuclear program in the face of international condemnation.

Mr. Trump has taken a hard-line position toward Pyongyang. Tweeting early this month, he cautioned his secretary of state, Rex Tillerson, that he was “wasting his time” trying to negotiate with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, whom the president has dubbed “Little Rocket Man.”

People in the survey disapproved of Mr. Trump’s handling of the Iran nuclear deal, negotiated under President Barack Obama, by a margin of 45% to 24%. Mr. Trump has threatened to pull out of the deal unless Congress and American allies take tougher measures against Tehran.


By a margin of 21 percentage points, survey respondents approved of Mr. Trump’s handling of the hurricanes that struck Texas and Florida. By contrast, his handling of Hurricane Maria, which devastated Puerto Rico, drew a negative response. Some 29% approved of his handling of the aftermath of the hurricane, while 54% disapproved.

Mr. Trump drew tepid support for his campaign to require NFL players to stand for the national anthem at games, rather than kneel in protest. By a two-to-one margin, Americans in the survey disapproved of his handling of the matter, with 59% disapproving and 30% approving.

With midterm elections a year away, more people say they want to see Democrats than Republicans control Congress, 48% to 41%. Typically, Democratic gains in Congress are associated with a lead of about 10 percentage points on this question.

The midterm elections figure in large part to be a referendum on the Trump presidency.

President Donald Trump pauses while meeting with children of the White House press corps dressed in Halloween costumes on Friday in the Oval Office. Photo: Bloomberg News

Asked about their motivations in casting a vote in the midterms, 46% said they wanted more Democrats to be elected in order “to be a check and balance to Donald Trump and congressional Republicans.” By contrast, 28% said they wanted “more Republicans who will help Donald Trump and congressional Republicans pass their agenda.”


Views were divided by party, with 79% of Democrats saying their vote would be intended as a check on Mr. Trump and the GOP, and 71% of Republicans saying their vote was intended to help the president and his party pass their priorities.

The poll was conducted Oct. 23-26 and surveyed 900 adults. The margin of error was plus or minus 3.27 percentage points.

Write to Peter Nicholas at peter.nicholas@wsj.com