EXCLUSIVE-Trump approval falls to record low of 31% as midterms near, Reuters/Ipsos poll finds

President Donald Trump's approval rating ​fell to a record low ​as Americans worried about high ‌gasoline prices ​and appeared ready to punish his Republican Party in the November 3 congressional elections, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll ‌that closed on Monday.

Some 31% of Americans approve of Trump's performance in office, down a percentage point from two weeks earlier and the lowest level in either of his ‌presidential terms, the four-day poll showed. Asked which party they would vote for if ‌the congressional elections were held today in what is known as a "generic ballot" question, some 47% of registered voters in the nationwide poll picked Democrats and 35% chose Republicans. The 12-point Democratic advantage was the ⁠widest ​over the current election cycle ⁠and could bolster Democratic hopes of seizing control of the US House of Representatives and the ⁠US Senate.

For Republicans, losing control of either chamber could complicate Trump's agenda in the last ​two years of his term. Generic ballot polls are national polls that provide ⁠an overall view of which party poll respondents want to see in charge in Congress. While these polls ⁠provide ​a view of national public sentiment, they do not capture all the nuances of the state-by-state and district-by-district contests that determine control of the Senate and House, ⁠contests in which Republicans hold some structural advantages.

The survey, which was conducted online, gathered responses from ⁠1,679 US ⁠adults, including 1,279 registered voters. The poll's results had a margin of error of 2 percentage points for all respondents and 3 ‌points for ‌registered voters.