Tennesseans have dim view of U.S. economy, poll finds

The majority of Tennesseans — 61% — from across the political spectrum say the U.S. economy is in bad shape, according to a new poll from Vanderbilt University. The same percentage of people say they’re worried about being able to pay for an emergency, like medical care or car repairs. Vanderbilt researchers say that’s a higher level of economic worry than their 2020 poll, which was taken during the first months of the pandemic. 

Support for President Donald Trump’s tariffs is down 11 points compared to December, before he took office. But views are split on party lines — more than 75% of Republicans support the tariffs, while 93% of Democrats oppose them. (Tennessee imported over $20 billion in goods from China in 2024, making it the fourth largest importer from China among U.S. states, and Trump has imposed a 145% tariff on most Chinese imports.)

“Whenever we ask Tennesseans about an issue related to national politics, we are far more likely to see Tennesseans of different parties disagree on the issue,” said Josh Clinton, a political science professor at Vanderbilt and the poll’s co-director.

The poll found Tennesseans have a rosier view of our state’s economy, but the vast majority of Democrats and Republicans said the sales tax on groceries is too high. 

Approval for Congress sits at just 36%, which is still its highest score among Tennesseans since Vanderbilt conducted its first poll in 2011. Go. Bill Lee still enjoys a positive approval rating, but it’s down from last year. Researchers suspect the decrease has to do with polarization between political parties trickling down to the state level.

You can read the poll here.