Donald Trump's current approval rating; Trump approval rate today

As of Tuesday, May 12, 2026, President Donald Trump’s approval rating is hovering at its lowest level of the second term. While his Republican base remains largely intact, national averages have dropped significantly due to high inflation, a $1.50 per gallon spike in gas prices, and widespread disapproval of the ongoing military conflict in Iran.

Donald Trump approval ratings today

Here's latest data:

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• Ballotpedia has Trump with a 40% approval rating.

• RealClearPolitics has Trump with a 40.5% approval rating.

• The New York Times has Trump with a 38% approval rating.

• The Economist/YouGov has Trump with a 37% approval rating.

• CNN/SSRS has Trump with a 35% approval rating.

Trump approval rating with Republicans

Approval among Republicans ranges from 81% to 85%. While still high, this is down roughly 4 to 7 points from the start of the year. The share of Republicans who "strongly approve" has fallen to 45%, down from 53% in January.

Lowest presidential approval rating

The record for the lowest individual approval rating in a single poll belongs to Harry S. Truman, who hit 22% in February 1952.

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press:What is Trump's approval rating? RealClearPolitics, more results

byMario Satorik

in

May 12, 2026

Donald Trump's current approval rating; Trump approval rate today

As of Tuesday, May 12, 2026, President Donald Trump’s approval rating is hovering at its lowest level of the second term. While his Rep...

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Matt Le Tissier interview: I will not be bullied into silence

What better place to meet Matt Le Tissier than The Dell pub at St Mary’s? As I arrive, the man who ended 103 years of history atSouthampton’s old ground with a fairy-tale goal is playing darts while chomping on a Double Decker. “Drink?” he says, marching to the bar.

Havingstood down from his ambassadorial rolein 2022 after appearing to question whether war reports describing massacres in Ukraine could be believed, Le Tissier is back working for the club he so spectacularly represented on the pitch for 16 years.

Now 57, Le Tissier does not believe that he will everreturn to mainstream punditryafter his outspoken criticism of the government’s Covid lockdown policies, but he does think that the offer of a formal role again in elite football has coincided with a certain shift.

“The whole kind of wokeism... there’s been a lot of kickback,” he says. “There’s a lot of people now who realise that perhaps it just went a bit too far. At some point it’s going to swing back where everyone’s more calm and settled. And you can speak your mind without fear of getting cancelled from jobs because you had an opinion that was outside the government narrative.”

Le Tissier then laughs out loud when I mention the headlines he recently made foraccusing Grok of “government propaganda”over plane trails – “a mountain out of a molehill,” he says – but he remains convinced thathis abrupt exit fromSoccer Saturdayin 2020was a direct result of his vocal social media presence.

He still feels vindicated on both his Covid stance (something we discussed at length in aprevious interview) and hisreluctance to endorsethe Black Lives Matter movement. He also stresses that he got some things wrong and has admitted that his family was at one stage concerned for his mental health. But he is adamant that he will not be muted.

‘It cost me my job at Sky’

“I think that’s dangerous if everybody takes that view; then you just let yourself be bullied into silence,” he says. “Rational debate is the way we move forward as a society. I’ve always been fairly opinionated. I’ve always kind of been my own man and able to make my own decisions and have my own thoughts.

“And it’s costly. It cost me my job at Sky and anyone who tries to tell you different doesn’t really know what they’re talking about. But I’d do the same again.

“There aren’t many things I’ve regretted. We’re all human and we all make mistakes. You apologise, you correct it and you move on. If you’re on the government side and you f--- up, that’s fine. But on the side I was sat, nobody will accept your apology. You’re cancelled.

“I’m quite happy plodding along. I do my after-dinner speaking, which I’ve done for the last 20-odd years since I retired, although a few years ago people were trying to get me cancelled from jobs there. Because I said something about Covid or Black Lives Matter they didn’t think that I should be able to have a job speaking at football clubs about my football career. That’s cancel culture.”

‘Ukraine post was one of the mistakes I made’

Of his post relating to Ukraine, where he highlighted another user’s message claiming the media had lied about Covid and weapons of mass destruction in Iraq before questioning whether they were telling the truth about Russian atrocities in Bucha, Le Tissier now says: “That was one of the mistakes I made. I posted the wrong example and I apologised for it. The club were getting a load of people trying to cancel me. I was ambassador, but I wasn’t on the payroll. I just went to Martin Semmens [then the chief executive] and said: ‘Look Martin, I don’t want you getting all that hassle.’”

And what has been the response to his return?

“The fans have always been great to me and most people understand that you’re allowed to have an opinion that’s different.

“I’ll never work in television again in terms of mainstream stuff. That doesn’t bother me. Especially as now I’m back here trying to help out the club that I’ve spent a massive part of my life at. I still get a buzz with it.”

After beating Arsenal and almost toppling Manchester City for a place in the FA Cup final, Southampton’sextraordinary run since Tonda Eckert became managerin November has led to them surging from 21st to a Championship play-off first leg at Middlesbrough on Saturday.

‘They can’t even add up my assists’

Le Tissier’s involvement in recent months has also spread beyond hosting a club podcast alongside commercial and ambassadorial work to spending more time at the training ground. He is especially interested in learning more about the data revolution since retiring in 2003. It would certainly be fascinating to compare his running and passing stats with the present day.

“Thankfully they didn’t have those cameras and trackers back then,” he says, smiling. “All I’ve got is 540 appearances, 209 goals. They can’t even add up my assists. I’ve had a rough guess. It was probably about 100 assists on top of the 209 goals. It’s not Messi and Ronaldo figures but it’s quite good, especially since I started as a nippy winger and three-quarters of my career was probably in midfield.”

The added point here was the truly extraordinary ratio of goals that were either goal-of-the-season contenders or decisive in keeping Southampton in the top flight throughout his career. For those who doubt how he might have fared in the modern era, Le Tissier also makes an important counter: “They’re playing on carpet most of the season now. We were lucky to get grass on the pitch until about October. It has allowed coaches to try to play on the ground, which I think would have suited me better.

“I remember seeing one game, my first ever hat-trick when I was 18 against Leicester. It had snowed that day, it was muddy and I was like: ‘How did I dribble on that?’ It was mad.

“But I wouldn’t change the time that I played. People weren’t so bothered with what you did. There wasn’t social media; there wasn’t that camera-phone environment where everything is documented. Even after we got beat on a Saturday afternoon, we’d still go out and have a drink.

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“One of the reasons I stayed [he turned down Tottenham, Liverpool and Chelsea] is because I liked having a fairly normal life. Even when we were in the middle of a relegation scrap, going into work was such good fun with the characters. There was never a day where you didn’t laugh... people taking the p--- out of each other and no one getting offended.”

One of the main arteries into the city would even greet visitors with his picture and the words “You are entering God’s country”. A little-known aside in recent years is that the man they called “Le God” has also found Christ himself, becoming a regular churchgoer in 2023 after attending the funeral of the wife of Dave Merrington, the former Southampton manager and a mentor to Le Tissier’s generation. Le Tissier was baptised last year.

‘I’ve had 35,000 West Ham fans singing big nose’

Away from the extremes of social media, he says that his everyday encounters with people are invariably positive, even at fierce rivals Portsmouth, where his ability to soak up being the pantomime villain could be a lesson to the darts world champion, Luke Littler.

“I think he’s getting some bad advice – needs to be better managed,” Le Tissier says. “You can’t beat 500 or a thousand people so there’s no point trying. I’ve had 35,000 West Ham fans singing, ‘Big nose, he’s got an effing big nose!’ And I’d just go, [shrugging his shoulders and pointing to his nose] and then they’re just like: ‘Oh, we won’t bother.’ That’s a life lesson.”

I wonder also what life lessons Le Tissier – a penalty-taker extraordinaire as much for his mental certainty as technical skill – can bring to a different generation of footballer and even manager. He has already been an occasional sounding board to the chief executive Phil Parsons and hopes that the learning can be mutual.

“Tonda’s very thorough in his preparation and very focused,” Le Tissier says. “If I see things that maybe we could improve on then I’ll just give my thoughts. If that helps, then so be it. It’s nice that they’ve given me that scope. It doesn’t mean they’re always going to take my advice, but they’re happy for me to give my opinion.

“There’s lots of little things I’m interested in finding out. For example, when players might be susceptible to injuries. In our day, you just relied on the player’s honesty to go, ‘It’s all right’ or ‘I don’t think I’m fit enough’. Those kind of decisions are almost being taken out of the player’s hands now. So I’m fascinated by what those metrics are. Where does the power lie in that little dynamic?”

When I suggest that it must all be a balance, Le Tissier nods and we are soon back to politics. “I think that’s not just in this scenario,” he says. “I think there’s a balance that needs to be found in all walks of life; that’s kind of been missing from the whole planet in the last six years.

“There are grey areas in most things. It’s important that we can identify that and make some sensible rational decisions by getting both perspectives. Sometimes you’ll fall on one side of the argument, sometimes the other.”

Le Tissier then bristles at the idea he can be pigeonholed at any extreme of the political spectrum. “I don’t like being put in a box,” he says. “I want to sit here and judge every subject on its merits – not because you’ve got to think this way because you’re in that tribe.”

‘Name-calling just stifles debate’

So does he think that he might surprise people with his views on some subjects? “Yeah, 100 per cent. People just assume things because you think one way about a certain subject. People don’t take the time to sit and chat or listen. They just want to label you as something... anti-Semitic or racist, or whatever they want to throw at you. That whole name-calling... it just stifles debate and it detracts from actually having a conversation about the issues.”

With the old party system on the brink of disintegration, I wonder whether he might go into politics.

“I’ve been asked that a few times. I don’t think I’m particularly interested. I feel like the system is a bit rigged at the minute, a bit s---. We’d be much better off with independent MPs and no party politics. I think the country would be less corrupt.

“I also think there should be a bit more like the Swiss-style direct democracy where you get referendums on big issues that really affect your country. Nobody voted for digital IDs. Nobody put that in their manifestos and yet successive governments have tried foisting it upon us. Legally, political parties should be made to actually stick to what is in their manifesto.”

So what does he think of Donald Trump? “I don’t really know if he is trying to break the system. I don’t know if he’s part of the system.”

‘Rupert Lowe and I have similar views on quite a few bits’

And how aboutRupert Lowe, once his old boss as Southampton chairman, and now an MP and leader of a party called Restore Britain? “I think we do have some very similar views on quite a few bits; there’s also quite a few bits where I think maybe he goes a little bit too far sometimes.

“I’d like to see less power in Westminster. I’d like to see local governments have more power and people police themselves better at local levels and not give huge amounts of money to the central government to spaff on stuff that people don’t need, and don’t vote for. The less civil servants and the less politicians we have, the better.”

So what do we waste money on? “We should help the people in this country first. And, when we’ve sorted our own country out, then we’ll be in a position to help others. If every country took that attitude, then the world would be a much better place.

“When we’ve got room to take people in, and look after other people, then let’s do that. We’ve got poverty in our population. I’m not blind to what’s going on. Perhaps people in the Westminster bubble don’t get to see.”

Shortly after our interview, I then spoke with someone who, while disagreeing with many of Le Tissier’s views, wanted to emphasise how brilliant he was when they spent a day together serving food to homeless people. It is a familiar sort of story around Southampton.

And, while we certainly do not agree on everything (Le Tissier says that is healthy anyway), it is hard to dispute one observation. People are generally also more multi-layered and nuanced than either their most vociferous supporters or critics would ever acknowledge.

byMario Satorik

in

May 11, 2026

Matt Le Tissier interview: I will not be bullied into silence

What better place to meet Matt Le Tissier than The Dell pub at St Mary’s? As I arrive, the man who ended 103 years of history atSoutham...

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Eurovision Song Contest 2026: Who is the UK entry and how can you watch?

TheEurovision Song Contestslogan, “United by music”, gets more ironic by the day. The 70th edition of the competition is ploughing ahead in Vienna this May, despite several countries boycotting due toIsrael’s participation, growing pressure on the UK’s entrant to also withdraw, and a high likelihood of vociferous protests on the night.

It should make for an even more bizarre Eurovision than usual, juxtaposing fraught geopolitics with the usual enjoyably bonkers, high-camp pop and retina-searing staging. So, who is actually participating (and sitting this one out), and does the UK have any chance of avoiding the infamous nul points? Here are all your burning 2026 Eurovision questions answered.

• Where is Eurovision 2026?

• When is the final?

• How to watch

• Full line-up and running order

• Who is representing the UK?

• Is Israel still in Eurovision?

• Who is boycotting Eurovision?

• Is Russia still banned?

• Is Scott Mills still taking part?

• The best acts for 2026

• How voting works

Where is Eurovision 2026?

We’re heading to Austria this year followingJJ’s victory in 2025with the glass-shattering techno-operaticWasted Love. This is the country’s third time hosting (the last stint was in 2015), and our base of operations will be the 16,152-seater Wiener Stadthalle in Vienna. On hosting duties are TV presenter Victoria Swarovski (yes,thatSwarovski – watch out for some seriously bling accessories) and actor Michael Ostrowski.

When is the final?

Tune in for pop and protests on Saturday, May 16. For the true superfans – or just gluttons for punishment – that grand final is preceded by two televised semi-finals on Tuesday, May 12 and Thursday, May 14.

How to watch the Eurovision final

The BBC is once again broadcasting all the action on BBC One andiPlayer. You can also follow along on BBC Radio 2 and BBC Sounds, should you wish to have the pure aural experience and miss out on such sights as a grown man running in a hamster wheel.

Of course, we would also recommend following along viaThe Telegraph’s dedicated Eurovision live blog for expert insight and a steady stream of snarky comments.

What is the full Eurovision line-up and running order?

This year, 35 countries are participating in Eurovision, and 25 will make the grand final.

The “Big Five” nations (although there are only four competing in 2026 – about which more shortly) get automatic entry to the final because they provide extra financial support to the contest. Last year’s winner also gets a free pass. So the final will definitely feature:

• Italy: Sal Da Vinci, Per Sempre Sì

• Germany: Sarah Engels, Fire

• France: Monroe, Regarde !

• Austria: COSMÓ, Tanzschein

• United Kingdom: Look Mum No Computer, Eins, Zwei, Drei

The running order for the first semi-final is:

1. Moldova: Satoshi, Viva, Moldova!

2. Sweden: FELICIA, My System

3. Croatia: LELEK, Andromeda

4. Greece: Akylas, Ferto

5. Portugal: Bandidos do Cante, Rosa

6. Georgia: Bzikebi, On Replay

7. Finland: Linda Lampenius x Pete Parkkonen, Liekinheitin

8. Montenegro: Tamara Živković, Nova Zora

9. Estonia: Vanilla Ninja, Too Epic To Be True

10. Israel: Noam Bettan, Michelle

11. Belgium: ESSYLA, Dancing on the Ice

12. Lithuania: Lion Ceccah, Sólo Quiero Más

13. San Marino: SENHIT, Superstar

14. Poland: ALICJA, Pray

15. Serbia: LAVINA, Kraj Mene

The running order for the second semi-final is:

1. Bulgaria: DARA, Bangaranga

2. Azerbaijan: JIVA, Just Go

3. Romania: Alexandra Căpitănescu, Choke Me

4. Luxembourg: Eva Marija, Mother Nature

5. Czechia: Daniel Zizka, CROSSROADS

6. Armenia: SIMÓN, Paloma Rumba

7. Switzerland: Veronica Fusaro, Alice

8. Cyprus: Antigoni, JALLA

9. Latvia: Atvara, Ēnā

10. Denmark: Søren Torpegaard Lund, Før Vi Går Hjem

11. Australia: Delta Goodrem, Eclipse

12. Ukraine: LELÉKA, Ridnym

13. Albania: Alis, Nân

14. Malta: AIDAN, Bella

15. Norway: JONAS LOVV, YA YA YA

Who is representing the UK?

The marvellously monikeredLook Mum No Computer. We’ve gone all down with the kids: our entry is a popular YouTuber (real name: Sam Battle), who is tackling workplace ennui through the medium of bouncy synth-pop and Germanic counting.

He has amassed more than 1.4 million social media followers by unveiling whimsical musical inventions that would tickle Wes Anderson – like a synthesiser made of Furby toys – and even has his own dedicated vintage museum in Ramsgate. He’s also a prolific singer-songwriter, and has legitimate musical experience to balance the effortful quirk: he used to be in the band Zibra, which played Glastonbury in 2015, and now tours as a solo artist.

Can the UK win?

Well, most of Europe’s voters seem to hate us, so probably not. Last year ouraptly namedsongWhat the Hell Just Happened?saw us finish in an ignominious 19th place. But might this be our year? Look Mum No Computer’sEins, Zwei, Dreiis catchy, naff, ridiculous and esoteric – in short, perfect Eurovision fuel.

It vaguely nods towards international sensibilities, but is also like a silly version of the London 2012 Olympics Opening Ceremony: the music video features baked beans, digestive biscuits, and a flying Mini Cooper wheezing over the White Cliffs of Dover. It brings a (confused) patriotic tear to the eye.

The choice of Battle also perhaps acknowledges Eurovision’s growing Gen Z fanbase. The choice of a geeky, clip-friendly YouTuber might see the UK get its best result in years. Or we could get shafted yet again. That essential tension is at the heart of the Eurovision experience.

Is Israel still in Eurovision?

Yes, in short. Yes, but… is the longer answer. The 2025 contest saw widespread protests due to the war in Gaza: pro-Palestinian protestors attempted to storm the stage when Israel’s Yuval Raphael was performing, some audience members booed and waved Palestinian flags, and in the streets of Basel, protestors threw smoke bombs and burned Israeli and American flags. Despite all of that, Raphael performed strongly and finished in second place.

This year, 28-year-old Noam Bettan is entering the fray as Israel’s contestant. His songMichelle, which is sung in a mix of English, French and Hebrew, is about a toxic relationship with “the queen of problems”, and also, as far as I can tell from the music video, about Bettan buying every terrible leather jacket that Shein has to offer.

Wait, didn’t Israel rig the vote last year?

There were raised eyebrows when Israel steamed into second place thanks to the televote – and actually looked like they might win the whole thing for a moment. Several nations, including Ireland, Spain and Belgium, then demanded that Eurovision organisers investigate the voting system.

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It was subsequently established that the Israeli government had run advertising campaigns to encourage public votes, and that ads in 2025 received more than 68 million impressions. In response, the contest has introduced new rules: entrants and broadcasters are banned from taking part in third-party promotional campaigns (including those run by governments), and fans are now only able to cast 10 votes each instead of 20.

Martin Green, director of Eurovision, said: “One of the clearest messages we received was the need to strengthen trust in the fairness of the contest.” He added that “governments do not participate in the Eurovision Song Contest, artists do.” To quote Ian Fletcher: “So that’s all good then.”

Who is boycotting Eurovision?

Ah, yes. Despite Green’s chipper hand-waving, it seems a few nations are still livid about Israel being in the contest at all – let alone their determined get-out-the-vote efforts. In September last year, Spain, Ireland, the Netherlands, Iceland and Slovenia threatened to boycott Eurovision unless Israel was excluded. In response, Austria and Germany said they would quit if Israel was chucked out, leaving organisers – who, lest we forget, wish us to be “united by music” – with a miserable dilemma.

They tackled that head on by announcing they would have an emergency vote on Israel’s participation in November… and then cancelling said vote following the ceasefire in Gaza. Alas, that did not appease the anti-Israel brigade, and those countries (Spain – which is normally one of the “Big Five” – Ireland, the Netherlands, Iceland and Slovenia) are now officially boycotting Eurovision. It’s the largest number of boycotting countries in the history of the contest.

What about the UK?

The UK is still taking part – despite some furious opposition. In April more than 12,000 people signed a Palestine Solidarity Campaign petitionurging Sam Battle to boycott.

Meanwhile the campaign group No Music for Genocide has released an open letter urging public broadcasters, performers, fans and more to boycott. The letter asks why Russia remains banned from the contest – after organisers said its presence would “bring the competition into disrepute” – but “the same standard” has not been applied to Israel. It’s signed by the likes of Brian Eno,Kneecap, Paul Weller, Paloma Faith, Massive Attack, Sigur Rós, and Primal Scream.

Who else is protesting?

Nemo, who won the contest for Switzerland in 2024, has handed back their trophy in protest at Israel taking part. The non-binary singer released a statement on Instagram, writing: “This is not about individuals or artists. It’s about the fact that the contest was repeatedly used to soften ⁠the image of a state accused of severe wrongdoing, all while the EBU insists that this contest is non-political.”

Dana International, who won Eurovision for Israel in Birmingham in 1998, has, in turn, denounced the boycotting nations, calling it a “violent and insulting” decision that added “only hatred and harm”. Once again, a reminder: united by music!

So Russia is still banned?

Yes, Russia is still banned. At the time of writing, no one is protesting that decision.

Will there be extra security at Eurovision 2026?

Oh yes. Vienna police are coordinating with contest officials to ensure the safety of the area around the Wiener Stadthalle, and conducting weekly threat assessments. Around 250 staff members from Vienna police and the interior ministry are working on security planning, and specialised teams, including explosive detection dog units, will likely be deployed in the run-up to the contest. There will also be background checks run on suppliers and staff, checks done on spectators, and airport-style security measures at the fan zones across the city.

Is Scott Mills still taking part?

Awkward. Mills was due to commentate on the Eurovision semi-finals and on the final on Radio 2 (as he has done since 2011), but wassacked by the BBClast month due to allegations of “serious sexual offences” against a teenage boy between 1997 and 2000. So no, he definitely won’t be part of the Eurovision team. The Sun has reported that Mills will be succeeded in his Eurovision role by Sara Cox, joining fellow commentator Rylan Clark.

Which acts should we look out for in 2026?

Putting all the many controversies to one side – let’s focus on the music. And the cheerful inanity of Eurovision. The current bookies’ favourite is Finland withLiekinheitin(or “Flamethrower”), which features angsty singing, literal flames, and a sexy blonde lady in a tinfoil dress dramatically playing the violin. It’s got everything.

Also keep an eye on France withRegarde !(yes, there really is a space before the exclamation mark, and yes, it’s driving me crazy), sung by 17-year-old Monroe, and Denmark’s thumping dance anthemFør Vi Går Hjem.

The UK isn’t the only entrant bemoaning office culture: Armenia is having a right old go as well (sample lyrics: “This meeting could have been an email / Free coffee won’t keep me here man”). Meanwhile Greece’s entry is a panic attack in human form, 50 per cent of Norway’s lyrics are “ya ya ya”, and Romania has courted controversy by selecting the songChoke Me, which campaigners say glamorises strangulation. Also Serbia has emotive death metal, and Australia is bringing out the big(ish) guns with actual chart-topper Delta Goodrem.

Wait, is Australia in Europe?

Not even a little bit, but here we are. Australians are superfans who enthused their way in. It was meant to be a one-off, in 2015, as part of the contest’s 50th-anniversary celebrations, but they were so popular (finishing an impressive fifth) that they were invited back. Eurovision also features Azerbaijan, so we’re really playing fast and loose with the “Euro” part of the equation here.

Do performers sing live?

Yes, it’s mandated in the rules that all lead vocals must be sung live – and in some cases, you can tell. (There is no corresponding rule that you must sing in tune.) Songs must only be original compositions and a maximum of three minutes long.

Remind me how the voting works?

Easily the most byzantine system of all these entertainment contests. In the final, contestants get two separate scores: one from a jury of music experts, the other from fan votes (cast via phone, text message or the official Eurovision app). Fans cannot vote for their own country.

The results are wheeled out in two stages in the grand final. First, the acts are ranked by jury vote, and then that order is slowly – agonisingly slowly – upended as each country’s spokesperson announces who they’re giving fan votes to, in the form of points, from one to 12. This is usually the time when the UK slides inexorably down the rankings, and we all lose faith in Europe, democracy and music.

Don’t countries just vote for their neighbours?

There is still neighbourly bloc voting, with the likes of Greece and Cyprus doggedly sticking together, year after year. Which is heart-warming. We need some certainties in life – and in Eurovision.

byMario Satorik

in

May 11, 2026

Eurovision Song Contest 2026: Who is the UK entry and how can you watch?

TheEurovision Song Contestslogan, “United by music”, gets more ironic by the day. The 70th edition of the competition is ploughing ahea...

Read More