How Americans Rate Donald Trump's Cabinet Picks

3 hours ago 3

Americans have a mostly positive view of some of President Donald Trump's top Cabinet picks, although a significant number have no opinion of them yet, according to a poll.

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Why It Matters

There have been concerns from Democrats and others about some of Trump's picks to fill administration positions over their suitability for the roles. A Gallup poll released Tuesday suggests public opinion on these selections could still shift either way.

What to Know

Among Trump's Cabinet picks, the secretary of health and human services nominee, Robert F. Kennedy Jr, appeared to be one of the more divisive. Yet, he has the highest favorable rating among all adults at 46 percent, a Gallup survey found. His unfavorable rating is 38 percent, giving Kennedy a net favorable rating of plus 8. A total of 15 percent of respondents said they have no opinion of Kennedy.

The poll, conducted January 21-27 among 1,001 adults, has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.

Marco Rubio, who was already confirmed as secretary of state when the poll was carried out, also has a net favorable score of plus 8 points, with 41 percent viewing him favorably and 33 percent unfavorably. More than a quarter (26 percent) of adults said they have not yet formed an opinion of the former Florida senator.

Tulsi Gabbard, Trump's nominee for director of national intelligence, has a narrow overall positive favorability rating among Americans. The survey shows 28 percent have a favorable view of the former Democratic representative, compared to 27 percent who have a negative view.

The poll reveals that 46 percent of respondents say they do not have an opinion of Gabbard.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who secured Senate confirmation on January 24 after Vice President JD Vance cast the deciding vote in a 50-50 split, has the lowest favorable score among Trump's Cabinet picks.

The Gallup poll showed that 22 percent of Americans hold a positive view of the former Fox News host, compared to 29 percent who view him negatively, giving him an overall score of minus 7 points. Nearly half (49 percent) said they have no opinion of Hegseth.

More Americans have an unfavorable view of tech billionaire Elon Musk (47 percent) than a favorable one (43 percent). One in 10 respondents said they have no opinion of Musk, who is leading the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

Trump scores a 48 percent favorable rating in the Gallup poll, with 50 percent of adults viewing him negatively.

When broken down by party, all of Trump's Cabinet picks have at least 50 percent favorable ratings among Republicans.

Gabbard (50 percent) and Hegseth (51 percent) have the lowest positive ratings among Republicans, while Rubio, Kennedy, and Musk score 67 percent, 80 percent and 83 percent, respectively.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries is the only Democrat featured in the poll who scores a positive net approval rating among all adults, with plus 7 points.

Former Vice President Kamala Harris has a net rating of minus 11 points, New York Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez scores minus 10 points, Democratic Senate leader Chuck Schumer has minus 12, and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is at minus 23.

What People Are Saying

Jeffrey M. Jones, senior editor for Gallup, wrote in his analysis of the poll results: "Americans' dissatisfaction with the state of the nation and low trust in the government and government leaders likely contribute to the public holding neutral or negative opinions of prominent politicians in Washington. The generally positive ratings these politicians receive from their own party's supporters are not enough to offset the poor ratings they get from Americans aligned with the opposite party, as well as mixed or mostly negative ratings from political independents."