US President Donald Trump speaks at a back-to-school event at the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington on Monday (local time), held to highlight the administration's education policy. [Reuters]
US President Donald Trump speaks at a back-to-school event at the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington on Monday (local time), held to highlight the administration's education policy. [Reuters]

Nearly six months into the war with Iran, American "war fatigue" is growing — despite President Donald Trump's repeated pledges to avoid prolonged overseas military conflicts. Support for the war has fallen to 31%, its lowest since the conflict began, while Trump's overall approval rating has held at 33% for the second consecutive week, matching an all-time low.

A Reuters-Ipsos poll of 1,215 American adults conducted Friday through Monday (local time) found that just 31% of respondents support US military action against Iran — the lowest level recorded since the war began in late February.

Support stood at 37% in a March poll and was still at 34% earlier this month before falling another 3 percentage points.

Particularly notable is the erosion of support among Republicans, Trump's core base. The share of Republican respondents backing the war dropped to 69%, down 8 percentage points from 77% in March. Reuters identified the decline among Republican supporters as a key factor dragging down overall support for the war.

A growing number of Americans also doubt the conflict will end anytime soon. Some 83% of respondents said they expect the war to "continue for a long time" — up 3 percentage points from 80% earlier this month.

Trump had pledged during the 2024 presidential election to avoid prolonged overseas military entanglements. Yet the war, which began when the United States and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28, is now approaching the six-month mark.

Military clashes have eased somewhat in recent weeks, but Iran has in effect restricted oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, pushing US gasoline prices more than $1 per gallon above pre-war levels. Analysts say the rising cost of the war is feeding into Americans' everyday expenses and souring public opinion.

Trump's approval rating remains at rock bottom. The poll found that 33% of respondents approve of Trump's job performance — the same figure as the previous survey and the lowest recorded across both of Trump's terms in the Reuters-Ipsos polling series.

The results also flash a warning sign for Republicans ahead of the November midterm elections. When asked which party's candidate they would vote for if a congressional election were held Tuesday, 33% of independents said they would choose the Democratic Party, compared with just 19% who said they would vote Republican.

The Trump administration is also accelerating efforts to isolate Iran economically rather than relying solely on military pressure. Trump recently warned that countries maintaining economic ties with Iran would face penalties, and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent raised the possibility of additional financial sanctions. However, no specific sanctions have been imposed yet.

Reuters noted that if the Iran war continues to weigh on Trump's political standing, it could become a liability for Republicans heading into the midterms. Trump has justified the war as necessary to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons, but a growing number of Americans are feeling the costs — a prolonged conflict and higher gasoline prices — and domestic public opinion has turned increasingly cold.


sjy@heraldcorp.com