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Supreme Court Approval Ratings Surge to Five-Year High Amid Political Landscape Shift
Recent polling data indicates a renewed sense of approval among voters towards the Supreme Court, following a hectic conclusion to the 2024-2025 term. Voter sentiment now shows that the Court enjoys its highest approval rating since 2020.
The latest survey from Fox News reveals that 47 percent of voters express approval for the Supreme Court’s performance, marking a 9-point increase from last July, when only 38 percent of voters held a favorable view.
Widespread Increases in Approval Ratings
This climb in approval is not restricted to a single demographic group. It particularly resonates with independent voters, who registered a remarkable 16-point rise in approval, followed closely by increases among women at 15 points, Republicans at 14 points, and voters aged 30 and under, whose approval grew by 12 points.
Daron Shaw, a Republican pollster who collaborates with his Democratic counterpart Chris Anderson to conduct the Fox News survey, notes the significance of the data. Shaw observes that public confidence in major institutions has waned over the past decade. He suggests that the Court’s revival in favorability could signify its efforts to navigate contentious political issues or reflect a broader resurgence in positive attitudes toward esteemed institutions.
Current Approval Levels Compared to Historical Data
Despite this uptick, the Court’s current approval ratings still fall short of the 54 percent approval it enjoyed in 2020, which was the last instance the ratings exceeded the 50 percent threshold. The previous peak was a record-high 58 percent in 2017, where majorities of Democrats at 65 percent, independents at 55 percent, and half of Republicans at 50 percent expressed their approval.
The latest survey, released on a Wednesday, indicates that 50 percent of voters now disapprove of the Court’s performance, a decrease from the 60 percent disapproval seen the prior year. A significant portion of disapproval comes from Democrats at 78 percent, alongside 75 percent of liberals and 61 percent of Black voters. Conversely, the highest levels of approval stem from Republicans at 76 percent, conservatives at 74 percent, and White evangelical Christians at 66 percent.
Perceptions of Partisanship in Court Decisions
The survey also highlights a notable reduction in the perception that partisanship significantly influences the Court’s decisions. The percentage of voters who believe partisanship plays a key role in decisions decreased from 42 percent to 33 percent since the beginning of 2024. This decline is evident across various demographic groups. Meanwhile, 44 percent of voters maintain that partisanship impacts decisions occasionally, while 20 percent assert it hardly ever or never does.
Bipartisan Views on Court’s Political Leanings
Since mid-2018, a consistent trend shows voters leaning toward the belief that the Court possesses a conservative bias. The last period when voters predominantly considered the Court too liberal was in February 2017, where 31 percent described the Court’s stance as liberal and 18 percent as conservative; a plurality then viewed the Court’s decisions as just right, at 47 percent.
Party Affiliations and Court Perceptions
Among Democrats, concern about the Court’s conservatism is particularly pronounced, with 72 percent believing it is too conservative. Just 17 percent consider it balanced, while a mere 8 percent say it leans liberal. In comparison, in 2017, only 29 percent viewed it as too conservative, while 60 percent believed it was appropriately positioned, and 8 percent thought it was too liberal.
A major faction of Republicans, 56 percent, currently sees the Court as adequately balanced in its decisions, while 29 percent contend it is too liberal, and 14 percent label it as too conservative. In 2017, those figures stood at 32 percent, 59 percent, and 5 percent respectively.
Independent Voters’ Balanced Perspective
Independents display a more nuanced perspective. As of now, 40 percent feel the Court is too conservative, while 36 percent perceive its decisions as just right, and 18 percent think it is too liberal. In 2017, their views were significantly different, with just 16 percent stating it was too conservative, 48 percent believing it was balanced, and 26 percent labeling it too liberal.
Reflecting on the Future
These shifts in approval ratings and perceptions of the Supreme Court underscore a complex and evolving political landscape in the United States. As public sentiment continues to change, the Court’s role and influence will likely remain a topic of great interest and debate among voters and political analysts alike. While the recent uptick in approval signals increased confidence in the institution, the stark divisions in opinion reveal the ongoing challenges that lie ahead.
Polling was conducted from July 18 to July 21, 2025, under the supervision of Beacon Research and Shaw & Company Research. The sample comprised 1,000 registered voters selected randomly from a national voter file, with responses gathered through live interviews and online methods. The results carry a margin of sampling error of ±3 percentage points, with variations higher among subgroups. Question phrasing and arrangement may also influence the outcomes, ensuring that weights are applied to demographic variables to accurately reflect the registered voter population.
