Voters divided over whether Biden or Trump fared better on economy, foreign policy

By Sarah Roderick-Fitch
The Center Square

American voters are split right down the middle when asked to compare the last year of former President Joe Biden’s presidency with the first year of President Donald Trump’s return to office on the issues of foreign policy and the economy, according to new polling.

The Center Square Voters’ Voice Poll results show that exactly half the country feels Trump fared better on both issues, and the other half feels Biden fared better. 

The Center Square Voters' Voice Poll was conducted by Noble Predictive Insights between March 2-5, 2026. The poll sample included 2,659 respondents, comprised of 952 Republicans, 934 Democrats, and 773 Independents, of which 330 are True Independents, which Noble Predictive refers to as independents who, when asked if they leaned toward one of the major parties, chose neither. It is among the most comprehensive tracking polls in the country.

Fifty percent of voters believe Trump has done a better job handling foreign policy during his first year back in office, while the same number believe Biden did a better job.

Eighty-five percent of Republicans think Trump has handled foreign affairs better, while 86% of Democrats believe Biden did a better job in his last year in office. However, independents favored Biden’s handling of the matter, with 53% supporting Biden compared to 47% for Trump.

The figures were nearly identical on the two leaders’ handling of economic policy – an even 50% split between Biden and Trump.

Eighty-five percent of Republicans believe Trump has done a better job, while 85% of Democrats think Biden fared better during his last year. Independents give Biden a slight edge over Trump, 52% to 48%.

The final year of Biden’s presidency was marred by high inflation rates, with rates averaging above 3%. Inflation began a steep climb in January 2021, peaking at 9.1% in June 2022.

Since Trump took office in January 2025, inflation has ranged from 3% to 2.3%, climbing back up to 3% in September, then back down to 2.4% in February.

During Trump’s first year back in office, he relied heavily on imposing tariffs on foreign countries to advance his administration’s economic and foreign policy agenda – facing backlash and legal challenges from Democrats and Republicans alike, eventually getting most struck down by a February Supreme Court ruling. Despite the ruling, the president modified the tariffs.

Trump has been extremely active in his foreign policy agenda beyond the tariffs, helping to negotiate several foreign pease agreements, removing former Venezuela dictator Nicolás Maduro from office in an overnight January raid and unsealing an indictment charging him with narcoterrorism; destroying Iran's nuclear sites last summer before restarting bombings earlier this year.

The poll has a margin of error of +/-1.9%. 

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