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Trump’s MAGA base turns against war on Iran as costs mount: Poll

July 24, 2026

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Support for the war on Iran has fallen sharply among US President Donald Trump’s core MAGA supporters, with just over a third saying the economic price is justified – down from 50 percent in May, according to a new POLITICO / Public First poll published on 22 July.

This represents a 13-point slide in just over two months and brings Trump’s most committed base closer to the position held by the majority of US citizens who opposed the war from the outset.

Another 37 percent of self-identified MAGA voters said they would back continued US involvement only if the costs stop rising, compared with 29 percent in May.

Around one-fifth of MAGA voters said the US should end its war no matter the costs.

Opposition runs deeper among Trump voters outside the MAGA bloc, with only 21 percent accepting higher costs for the war and 28 percent wanting US involvement halted regardless of the price.

Asked why gas prices have climbed to over $4 per gallon since Trump returned to office, most respondents cited the war, including 57 percent of MAGA voters and 63 percent of Trump voters outside that bloc.

The poll comes as the US military has been bombing Iran for over two weeks, following Trump’s declaration earlier this month that the Iran-US MoU was over and Iran’s declaration that it was dead due to US violations.

As public opposition to the illegal war increases, Trump participated in a dignified transfer ceremony at Dover Air Force Base for four US soldiers killed in Iranian attacks, Reuters reported on 22 July.

US President Trump warned that Iran will ‘pay a big price’ right before he attended the dignified transfer ceremony for four US troops killed in action in recent days. pic.twitter.com/qKlBFvoyqr

— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) July 22, 2026

Three were killed in a missile strike on Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan, and the fourth was killed at Erbil Air Base in Iraq, reportedly during a controlled detonation of a downed drone.

At least 18 US soldiers have been killed since the start of the war, and the number of wounded has surpassed 500, according to US officials.

A source close to the White House who spoke with POLITICO said the government is at “a maximum level of frustration” and that senior figures now accept the victory Trump wants cannot be won because the public will not back the escalation required, adding: “We’ve got more dead Americans and a politically impossible situation.”

Trump’s approval rating has remained near the lowest levels of his political career since the war began, with the Republican Party entering November’s midterms at risk of losing its House majority and possibly the Senate.