The Most and Least Popular Figures in Both Parties

In the latest polls, neither party is connecting well with voters, and most of their leaders carry weak approval ratings. Still, a small group of Republicans and Democrats perform noticeably better than the rest, revealing who may help their parties in 2026/2028, and who may weigh them down.

The most likely Republican presidential nominee, JD Vance, is viewed more favorably than most other well-known politicians. In the RealClearPolitics Averages for Political Leaders’ Favorability, Vance ranks the highest at -5.8 net favorability, compared with Trump’s -10.8.

In an Economist poll, where Vance had a -10 net favorability rating, one of his potential competitors, Gavin Newsom, had a -8 net favorability rating. Another Democrat, Zohran Mamdani, who has recently risen in popularity after becoming Mayor-elect of New York, had a -3 net favorability. This poll was taken after the New York mayoral election but before Mamdani’s recent trip to the White House, where Trump and Mamdani held a friendly press conference despite previously labeling each other “fascists” and “communists.”

Another figure who has been out of the limelight more recently, Kamala Harris, was not insulated from declining approval after she lost the presidential election. While she was at around net zero approval at the time of the election, she has fallen to -13.2 net favorability in an October Economist poll. So far, she has declined to run for California governor, but has not ruled out running again for president in 2028. Most polls have Newsom ahead of Harris in the 2028 Democratic primary, though the latest Morning Consult poll had Harris leading with 29% to Newsom’s 20%.

In Congress, three of the four leaders have similar favorability. Speaker Mike Johnson has a favorability rating of -6.4, and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries has -7.2. Senate Majority Leader John Thune similarly has a net favorability of -8.

The only exception is Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, who has -20 net favorability. This stems from the fact that even among Democrats, only 38% were favorable while 40% were unfavorable, according to a Fox News poll from November.

More similar to Schumer than Jeffries is the overall Democratic Party favorability, which sits at -23.9. Despite the Republican Party doing better at -12.6, Democrats lead in the 2026 Generic Congressional Ballot by 4.8 points, suggesting that, despite concerns about the party, Democrats like their specific members of Congress more than the party itself.

All these favorability ratings point to a pessimistic view of America’s current politicians, as none of the leading figures or parties have positive favorability. However, heading into the midterms and the 2028 elections, new and old faces will have a chance to market themselves to the American people and become more loved.