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By Emma Marsden
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President Donald Trump’s approval ratings have fallen across ten of America’s biggest farming states since the start of his second term, according to a recently published poll, as farmers and truckers face soaring diesel prices and question how much relief the administration’s proposed tax measures will provide.
The figures come from a Civiqs' poll based on 135,005 responses from registered voters collected between January 20, 2025 and October 08, 2026.
The data shows a broad decline in Trump’s standing across the states, although his approval remains above disapproval in Oklahoma and Tennessee. While the comparison offers a snapshot of the level of support for Trump across major agricultural states, it does not establish whether rising fuel costs have influenced voters’ views.
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Newsweek contacted the White House via online form and the U.S. Department of Agriculture and American Farm Bureau via email on Friday for comment.
Trump’s Approval Varies Across Farming States
Looking at the top ten states in terms of farm count—Texas, Iowa, Missouri, Ohio, Oklahoma, Illinois, Kentucky, Minnesota, Tennessee and California—Texas leads the group with approximately 229,000 farms, and 125 million acres operated, followed by Iowa with 86,200.
Oklahoma is second to Texas in terms of acreage, operating 32.9 million according to figures compiled by World Population Review.
Civiqs estimates show Trump with a 47 percent approval rating in Oklahoma and 44 percent in Tennessee. In the other eight states in the comparison, disapproval equaled or exceeded approval.
The map below shows approval ratings in each U.S. farming state after the diesel tax cuts.
California recorded the lowest approval rating, at 24%, with 71% disapproving. In Illinois, 29% approved and 66% disapproved, while Minnesota recorded 28% approval and 64% disapproval.
In Texas, approval stood at 37%, against 56% disapproval. Iowa and Ohio recorded 34% and 37% approval respectively, and both recorded 55% disapproval. Missouri had 42% approval and 52% disapproval, while Kentucky had 39% approving and 51% disapproving.
Trump Approval Rating in Farming States at Start of His Second Term
Compared with the start of Trump’s second term, his net approval rating—the share approving minus the share disapproving—declined in all ten states, according to the Civiqs tracker poll.
At the start of Trump’s second term, approval exceeded disapproval in seven of the 10 states. Oklahoma recorded the highest approval, at 64%, against 33% disapproval, giving Trump a net approval rating of 31 percentage points. Tennessee followed with 61% approval and 36% disapproval, for net approval of 25 points, while Kentucky recorded 59% approval and 36% disapproval, giving it a net rating of 23 points.
Missouri recorded 54% approval and 42% disapproval, for net approval of 12 points. Ohio stood at 52% approval and 44% disapproval, while Texas and Iowa each recorded 51% approval and 45% disapproval. Their net approval ratings were eight points in Ohio and six points in both Texas and Iowa.
In the remaining three states, disapproval exceeded approval. Minnesota recorded 42% approval and 54% disapproval, for net approval of minus 12 points. Illinois stood at 40% approval and 57% disapproval, giving it a net rating of minus 17, while California had the lowest figures, with 32% approval and 65% disapproval, for net approval of minus 33 points.
Diesel Tax Relief Faces Questions
The results come as high diesel prices increase costs for farmers, freight companies and other businesses dependent on fuel.
As reported by Newsweek, Trump raised the possibility of suspending the federal gas tax on Tuesday, saying his administration was “thinking about that” as it considers further ways to bring down rising gas and diesel prices ahead of the November midterms.
With the national average price of gas nearly 50 percent above its level before the war in Iran began in late February, the administration is facing increasing pressure to reduce the cost of filling up. On Monday, Trump signed an executive order allowing tax-free dyed diesel to be used on public roads through the end of the year, without interest or penalties.
Farmers, truckers and economists have questioned whether the administration’s diesel-tax measures would provide meaningful relief from soaring prices. An October 5 executive order expanded access to red-dyed diesel, generally used in off-road equipment, and deferred the federal excise tax on diesel used on public roads until the end of 2026, as reported by the Associated Press.
The federal tax deferral is worth 24 cents per gallon.
The outlet reported that the national average diesel price was around $6.30 per gallon on October 7, substantially higher than a year earlier. Farmers who already use tax-exempt dyed diesel in their machinery may see little direct benefit from expanded access, while trucking companies face different costs and restrictions.
"Fall is a very intensive fuel time. Along with harvesting, there is winter wheat planting, and all of those activities need diesel," said Faith Parum, deputy chief economist for the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF), as reported by the AFBF.
"And that increased cost of diesel is really hurting farmers' budget. We already know that commodity prices are low, production expenses continue to increase, so this just further compounds that pressure that they've been feeling these last four years."
Higher fuel costs can also increase the expense of transporting crops and agricultural inputs, putting pressure on businesses and potentially contributing to higher prices for consumers.
Sources: Farm-count data from World Population Review (2024 data); presidential approval ratings from Civiqs.
Contact Newsweek editor on this story: Edward Pearcey.
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