Special to IFN
North Carolina remains politically divided one year into President Donald Trump’s second term, with a new Catawba-YouGov Survey showing the president at 44 percent approval to 51 percent disapproval. The survey also reveals near-even splits across a range of policy and foreign-affairs questions, highlighting a state marked more by balanced division than consensus on most issues.
“After one year in office, Trump’s ratings continue in line with the past two Catawba-YouGov surveys,” said Dr. Michael Bitzer, professor of politics and history and director of Catawba College’s Center for North Carolina Politics & Public Service, which wrote and paid for the survey administered by YouGov. “While majorities of self-identified Democratic and Independent North Carolinians continue to disapprove of the president, Republican North Carolinians have slightly softened their support.
“In the last survey done in October 2025, strong approval among Republicans was at 62 percent, with only a quarter ‘somewhat’ approving of him. Now, 56 percent of Republicans ‘strongly’ support the president, with nearly a third being ‘somewhat’ supportive,” Bitzer said.
The survey gauged North Carolinians’ opinions about Gov. Josh Stein, both congressional parties, the country’s future, and host of policy issues, including immigration, CBP/military presence in cities, Venezuela, Greenland, and how January 6, 2021, is viewed five years later.
Taken January 13-22, 2026, by YouGov and paid for by Catawba’s Center for North Carolina Politics & Public Service, the online survey’s overall margin of error (adjusted for weights) is plus/minus 3.69 percent for the 1,000 weighted responses; where results of subgroups are reported, the margin of error will be greater. Survey results should be viewed as informative and not determinative.
MAJORITY CONTINUES TO GIVE STEIN APPROVAL, BUT BOTH PARTIES IN CONGRESS ARE UNDERWATER
Stein, the Democratic governor, continues to receive majority approval by North Carolinians: 53 percent approve, with 28 percent disapprove and nearly two-out-of-ten saying they don’t know.
“At the time when Stein gets 75 percent and 54 percent approve from his own party and Independents, he also garners over one-third of Republicans approving of him, continuing this trend he had in his first year in office,” Bitzer said.
Both parties in Congress are not thought of well by North Carolinians: only 38 percent approve of Congressional Republicans and 39 percent of Congressional Democrats. Majorities of Independents have driven both parties’ approval ratings down, while partisans support their party and reject the other.
NORTH CAROLINIANS ARE DIVIDED ABOUT THE COUNTRY MOVING FORWARD AND POLICIES
Reflecting its partisan divide, North Carolina is split over feeling optimistic or pessimistic about the nation’s future. When asked about the next six months, 40 percent of respondents are optimistic, while 43 percent are pessimistic. Looking out a year from now, optimism slightly leads pessimism, 43 to 41 percent, while in thinking about the remainder of the Trump presidency, pessimism predominates, 45 to 40 percent.
“At least seven-out-of-ten North Carolina Republicans are optimistic about the nation’s future, with that optimism hitting 80 percent for the last three of years of Trump’s presidency,” Bitzer noted. “However, pluralities of Independents and significant numbers of Democrats express pessimism throughout the time Trump has left in office.”
The Catawba-YouGov Survey asked a series of questions about confidence and approval/disapproval in President Trump’s managing of several policy issues.
Trump’s handling of immigration garnered a 43-43 tie in those saying they are confident versus not confident. Confidence among Republicans was at 86 percent, while three-quarters of Democrats said they were not confident. Independents split, 40-43, between confidence and not confident.
North Carolinians lacked confidence in the president over economic issues, with only 38 percent having confidence in Trump’s:
♦ Handling of the overall economy, compared to 46 percent not confident;
♦ Handling of tariffs being imposed against other nations, with 47 percent not confident; and
♦ Handling of inflation and cost of living, with 49 percent not confident;
North Carolinians are also divided over recent military action in Venezuela: 43 percent approve of the U.S. military apprehending the Venezuelan president, while 42 percent disapprove.
However, when asked “do you approve or disapprove of the U.S. planning to “run Venezuela until a leadership transition is able to take place,” as President Trump indicated,” barely one-third said they approve, with 54 percent disapproving. And an even smaller percentage approve of sending American troops into Venezuela to run the country: only 25 percent, compared to 59 percent disapproving.
When asked whether Trump should have informed Congress of his military operations, a majority — 54 percent — said yes, while 31 percent said it was acceptable to proceed without informing congressional leaders. Another majority of North Carolinians — 52 percent — said that Congress should have authorized the operations first, while 31 percent again said that was unnecessary.
Finally, when asked if “the recent U.S. intervention in Venezuela aligns with President Trump’s America First policy,” North Carolinians are evenly split: 37 percent saying it did and 37 percent saying it did not align.
With President Trump demanding the handover of Greenland from Denmark, six out of ten North Carolinians disapprove of military action to acquire the territory, with only 23 percent approving of such a move.
And with tensions rising between the U.S. and Iran, 45 percent would disapprove of U.S. military action against Iran, while 37 percent would approve.
North Carolina public opinion is also divided over a host of issues, including:
♦ Sending Customs & Border Patrol Units/the military into cities to arrest those suspected of being illegally in the country (42 percent confident to 44 percent not confident)
♦ U.S. military strikes on alleged drugs traffickers in the Caribbean (both confident and not confident came in at 42 percent each)
♦ Military action against Venezuela and apprehending the Venezuelan president (40 percent confident to 43 percent not confident)
Two other international issues that continue in the news—the Russia-Ukraine War and the Israeli-Hamas Conflict—garnered low levels of confidence in the president’s handling. Only 38 percent are confident in Trump’s handling of the conflict between Israel and Hamas (42 percent not confident), and only one-third were confident regarding the Russia-Ukraine War, with 46 percent not confident.
With five years removed from the event, North Carolinians are split over how to describe the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. One-third responded that it was “a violent insurrection,” with a quarter describing it as “a protest that included some violence.” The responses of “a violent riot” and “a mostly peaceful protest” garnered 13 percent each.
A plurality of Republicans—46 percent—said the event was a protest with some violence, while a strong majority—58 percent—of Democrats said it was a violent insurrection. A plurality of Independents—38 percent—agree with Democrats, while a little under a quarter of Independents agree with Republicans.
LEARN MORE
You may find additional details about the poll’s finding, methodology, and responses on Catawba College’s website at https://www.catawba.edu/news/all-news/2026/yougov-21/
About the Center for NC Politics and Public Service
The Center for North Carolina Politics & Public Service at Catawba College is dedicated to enriching civic dialogue, deepening understanding, and fostering engagement within North Carolina. Through non-partisan initiatives, the Center promotes the ideals of public service, civic character and engagement, and informed citizenship across the state. By educating North Carolinians about the state’s political dynamics and emphasizing the value of public service, the Center cultivates practical political understanding and encourages active civic participation. In doing so, it helps instill a lasting respect for public life and being a responsible citizen — both among Catawba College students and throughout the wider North Carolina community.