Poll: Americans increasingly skeptical of Iran war

A new AP-NORC poll suggests Americans are growing increasingly skeptical of the war with Iran, with about two-thirds saying the conflict has not been worth fighting and support for President Donald Trump’s handling of the war slipping. The survey, conducted July 23-27, found just 28% of U.S. adults approve of Trump’s handling of Iran, down from 34% last month. Support also dipped among Republicans, with 61% approving, compared with 71% in June, though the poll’s margin of error means the decline is modest.

The findings come after nearly two weeks of intensified fighting in which U.S. forces struck Iranian military and commercial targets and Iran retaliated against American facilities in the Middle East. Eighteen U.S. service members have been killed since the conflict began on Feb. 28. The poll found broad bipartisan concern over the war’s economic impact. About 72% of Americans said keeping oil and gas prices down is extremely or very important, while a similar share said negotiating a permanent ceasefire should be a top priority.

Only about 2 in 10 Americans support continuing military action. Around 3 in 10 favor pausing the fighting to negotiate a ceasefire, while another 2 in 10 want military operations to end altogether. Republicans were more likely than Democrats and independents to back continued military action, although roughly 3 in 10 Republicans favored either a pause or a complete end to the conflict. The findings present a political challenge for Trump, who has defended the military campaign as necessary to stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons.

His administration has also faced growing criticism over rising fuel prices and questions about the conflict’s long-term goals. The poll found gasoline prices have become a major source of financial stress for many Americans, with about four in 10 saying fuel costs are now a significant concern as prices climb above $4 a gallon in many parts of the country. Despite growing public unease, preventing Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon remains a high priority, particularly among Republicans, while support for a negotiated ceasefire continues to outpace support for an extended military campaign.

Trump promised during his 2024 presidential campaign that he would not lead the U.S. into any further ‘forever war’ commitments overseas, only to follow his Operation Midnight Hammer strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities last summer with another conflict that he once described as a ‘short-term excursion’ but which is about to enter its sixth month. Despite the president’s repeated insistence that Tehran is ‘desperate’ to make a deal to end the hostilities, it has proven itself a tough negotiator and has not shied away from launching fresh attacks of its own.

Meanwhile, on the domestic front, many of Trump’s fellow Republicans are keen to draw a line under an unpopular war in good time for November’s midterms. They remain fearful that its impact on gas prices could count against GOP candidates at the ballot box, who could bear the brunt of a protest vote that threatens to sweep the Democrats back to power in Congress.