U.S. Economy and Living Standards

Gallup’s latest well‑being data show only about 59% of Americans in 2025 rated their future life an 8 or higher on a 0–10 scale, the lowest share since Gallup began asking the question nearly 20 years ago and a sharp decline in future optimism relative to current satisfaction. Fewer than half of adults — about 48% — now qualify as 'thriving,' meaning they rate their current life at 7 or above and their expected life in five years at 8 or above. The partisan pattern that usually offsets after a presidential transition broke down: Democrats’ optimism dropped from 65% to 57% as Donald Trump returned to the White House, while Republicans’ outlook improved but not enough to balance that fall, leaving overall national optimism lower. Hispanic adults saw a particularly steep decline in future optimism, from 69% to 63%, a bigger drop than among white or Black respondents, which Gallup’s Dan Witters links in part to wider cost‑of‑living concerns. The data dovetail with other recent polling showing broad anxiety over prices, housing and opportunity, suggesting a deep, bipartisan gloom about the country’s direction that could shape voter behavior and receptiveness to economic policy proposals in 2026.