Inside angry voters’ frustrations with Trump

Set for Tuesday, November 3, the United States' 2026 midterms are roughly eight and one-half months away. And Democratic Party strategists are seeing some hopeful signs, including a series of double-digit Democratic victories in late 2025 and early 2026 elections and Trump's weak approval ratings in numerous polls.

But there's a caveat. Many pollsters are finding that while Trump is unpopular, the Democratic Party is unpopular as well. And some political commentators believe that recent Democratic victories reflect anger against Trump and the MAGA movement more than enthusiasm for the Democratic Party.

The New York Times discussed the state of the Democratic Party with a focus group consisting of 13 Democratic voters, many of whom are vehemently critical of Trump but use words like "afraid" and "paralyzed" to describe their party.

The Times, in an article published on February 17, reports, "In particular, they wanted candidates who were young, progressive and from a more modest or working-class background, with clear and simple messages. And as for the Democrats who are standing out to these people — Jasmine Crockett, Pete Buttigieg, Zohran Mamdani, Gavin Newsom — many of them are the ones who've made a point of appearing in combative media environments. Invoking a famous Michelle Obama quote, after the past few years, these voters no longer want a party that goes high."

The Times asked the voters why they are feeling frustrated, and Candy — a 46-year-old Latina from Nevada — pointed to Trump's violent U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids.

Candy told the Times, "I know people who are immigrants. So just what's going on with immigration, and even myself being a U.S. citizen, I'm concerned about getting pulled over and shot and killed, or one of my family members is going to get discriminated against. I'm scared to leave my home. I already work at home; now, I feel like I have to stay here because I'm so scared."

Denise, a 57-year-old Latina living in Georgia, told the Times, "I'm Puerto Rican, and I speak full Spanish. So sometimes, I'm scared to go out and speak my native language. My mother, I'm afraid for her because she's older. They might just judge her by the way she looks. So I'm very, very frustrated."

Dianne, a 72-year-old white voter in Wisconsin, told the Times, "I wake up in the morning, and the news always has something goofy that (Trump) invented to say today. And I think it's all to take our mind off what's going on with the Epstein files."

Asked how Trump's second term compares to his first, Terrill — a 68-year-old Black voter in Indiana — replied, "Worse. The first time around was a trial run. The second time was when he really kind of dropped the boom, when he felt that power that he had the second time around."

Michael, a 56-year-old white voter in Oregon, said of Trump's second term, "It's worse than I expected. I thought it would be bad, but it's going even further than I thought he would. In his first term, there were some people around him who tried to rein him in — and now, he's just unhinged and off the rails. And everybody around him is pushing him in this direction."