---
title: "How Americans think a president impacts the country and their personal lives"
description: "Americans widely say that who the president is has a large impact on the country overall but a more limited impact on their own personal lives."
date: "2025-07-08"
authors:
  - name: "Gabriel Borelli"
    job_title: "Research Associate"
    link: "https://www.pewresearch.org/staff/gabriel-borelli/"
  - name: "Rolando Ortega"
    job_title: "Intern"
    link: "https://www.pewresearch.org/staff/rolando-ortega/"
url: "https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2025/07/08/how-americans-think-a-president-impacts-the-country-and-their-personal-lives/"
categories:
  - "Political & Civic Engagement"
  - "Political Issues"
  - "Politics & Policy"
---

# How Americans think a president impacts the country and their personal lives

Americans widely say that who the president is has a large impact on the country overall but a more limited impact on their own personal lives, according to a new Pew Research Center survey.

[![A horizontal stacked bar chart showing that majorities of Americans say who is president makes a big difference for the country; fewer say this for their own personal lives.](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/07/SR_25.07.08_potus-impact_1.png?w=640)](https://www.pewresearch.org/?attachment_id=269564)

Wide majorities of U.S. adults say who is president makes a big difference for:

- The United States’ standing in the world (78%)

- The mood of the country (76%)

- National security (71%)

- The health of the economy (68%)

Far fewer Americans (30%) say who the president is makes a big difference in their own lives. Another 51% say who the president is makes some difference in their lives, while 18% say it makes no difference.

**How we did this**

Pew Research Center conducted this analysis to understand Americans’ views of the impact a president has in different areas, including on people’s personal lives.

For this analysis, we surveyed 5,044 adults from June 2 to 8, 2025. Everyone who took part in this survey is a member of the Center’s American Trends Panel (ATP), a group of people recruited through national, random sampling of residential addresses who have agreed to take surveys regularly. This kind of recruitment gives nearly all U.S. adults a chance of selection. Interviews were conducted either online or by telephone with a live interviewer. The survey is weighted to be representative of the U.S. adult population by gender, race, ethnicity, partisan affiliation, education, presidential vote (among voters) and other factors. [Read more about the ATP’s methodology](https://www.pewresearch.org/the-american-trends-panel/).

Here are the [questions used for this analysis](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/07/SR_25.07.08_potus-impact_questionnaire.pdf), the [topline](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/07/SR_25.07.08_potus-impact_topline.pdf) and the [survey methodology](https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2025/06/17/trump-immigration-methodology/).

Compared with two years ago, more Americans now say the president has a big impact on both national issues and their personal life.

[![Line charts showing that Americans – especially Democrats – are more likely now than 2 years ago to say that who is president makes a big difference both nationally and personally.](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/07/SR_25.07.08_potus-impact_2.png?w=640)](https://www.pewresearch.org/?attachment_id=269567)

This is particularly true among Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents. They are now far more likely to say that who is president makes a big difference for:

- The United States’ standing in the world (83% now vs. 64% in 2023)

- The mood of the country (80% vs. 62%)

- The health of the economy (72% vs. 39%)

- National security (71% vs. 54%)

Majorities of Republicans and GOP leaners also say that who is president generally has a big impact on these areas. But their views have shifted less than Democrats’ have since 2023.

#### How much of an impact does the president have on people’s personal lives?

Some Americans are more likely than others to say that who is president makes a big difference in their lives.

##### Views by age

[![A horizontal stacked bar chart showing that Americans’ views of the impact of the president on their own lives differ by age, strength of partisanship.](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/07/SR_25.07.08_potus-impact_3.png?w=640)](https://www.pewresearch.org/?attachment_id=269568)

Older adults are more likely than younger ones to say that who is president makes a big difference in their lives. Four-in-ten Americans ages 65 and older say this, compared with 33% of those 50 to 64, 25% of those 30 to 49 and 26% of those 18 to 29.

##### Views by party

Similar shares of Democrats (32%) and Republicans (29%) say the president makes a big difference in their personal lives. (These shares include those who lean to each party.)

**However, strong partisans in both parties are more likely to say that who is president makes a big difference to them personally.** For example, 44% of people who identify as strong Democrats say this, compared with 25% of Democrats with weaker partisan ties and 27% of those who lean toward but don’t identify with the Democratic Party. A similar pattern appears among Republicans.

*Note: Here are the [questions used for this analysis](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/07/SR_25.07.08_potus-impact_questionnaire.pdf), the [topline](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/07/SR_25.07.08_potus-impact_topline.pdf) and the [survey methodology](https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2025/06/17/trump-immigration-methodology/).*