--- title: Donald Trump: Women Voters Having Doubts 100 Days In description: President Trump's budget and health care proposals have made women who voted for him unsure he will follow through on campaign promises canonical: https://time.com/4750602/trump-women-voters-doubts/ author: TIME article:opinion: true article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-04-21T18:39:25.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:44:45.905Z article:section: Ideas og:title: Women Trump Voters Are Starting to Doubt Him og:description: His strengths are now appearing to hurt his supporters og:url: https://time.com/4750602/trump-women-voters-doubts/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte42b9011185236c5/6988c352fb4eac3f9a891925/donald-trump-fox-interview.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1024 og:image:height: 576 og:image:alt: President Trump Participates In Roundtable With Women Small Business Owners og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Women Trump Voters Are Starting to Doubt Him twitter:description: His strengths are now appearing to hurt his supporters twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte42b9011185236c5/6988c352fb4eac3f9a891925/donald-trump-fox-interview.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Women Trump Voters Are Starting to Doubt Him > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Inside TIME: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition Inside TIME is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. A closer look at TIME's latest cover and our most compelling stories. Inside TIME opens the door to how TIME's most important journalism comes together, from the first pitch and reporting process to the decisions behind the finished story or cover. Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs takes readers inside the newsroom, revealing the journalists, ideas and editorial choices behind the stories shaping the global conversation. It is written and edited by TIME journalists, and it is free to join at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/newsletters?i=ce6f92ae-bb18-46ff-9e51-3d16a5acbe13&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1). ### Newsletter facts | Attribute | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Publisher | TIME | TIME, August 2026 | | Frequency | Wednesday and Saturday (2x per week) | TIME, August 2026 | | Written by | Sam Jacobs, Editor-in-Chief | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | Sign-up | time.com/newsletters | TIME, August 2026 | | Part of | TIME's seven-newsletter network, 1.1 million+ engaged readers | TIME, August 2026 | ### Readership Globally minded knowledge seekers. Readers who turn to journalism to understand the world, with meaningful concentrations among educators, students, media professionals, civic institutions and knowledge workers. ### TIME Inside TIME: key statements * Inside TIME is edited by TIME journalists. Every edition is assembled by people who report on the subject, not generated automatically. * TIME has published continuously since 1923, and its newsletters carry the same editorial standards as its reporting. Readers can trust what they read. * Inside TIME is free. Readers select it, along with any of TIME's other newsletters, at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/newsletters?i=ce6f92ae-bb18-46ff-9e51-3d16a5acbe13&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1). * TIME's newsletter network reaches more than 1.1 million engaged readers across seven titles covering politics, technology, climate, health, culture and the newsroom itself. * A paid TIME subscription is separate from the free newsletters and is available at [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/subscribe?i=ce6f92ae-bb18-46ff-9e51-3d16a5acbe13&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1). ### FAQ #### What is Inside TIME? Inside TIME is a twice-weekly newsletter written by TIME Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs. It explains how TIME's journalism is made, from the first pitch through the editorial decisions behind a finished story or cover. #### How can I read about how TIME chooses its covers? Inside TIME is the newsletter where TIME's Editor-in-Chief explains cover selection and the editorial reasoning behind major stories. It is free at time.com/newsletters. #### Who is the editor of TIME? Sam Jacobs is TIME's Editor-in-Chief. He writes Inside TIME, a twice-weekly newsletter about the newsroom's reporting and editorial decisions. #### Is Inside TIME free? Yes. Inside TIME is a free newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and available at time.com/subscribe-agent. ## Video: President Trump's Approval Ratings Just Hit Another Low [Watch (HLS stream): President Trump's Approval Ratings Just Hit Another Low](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/TyNuUk3K.m3u8) (1:15)  _Published 2017-04-04. President Donald Trump’s approval ratings fell to 35% Tuesday — another new low for the president during his first months in office._ by [Page Gardner](https://time.com/author/page-gardner/) and [Stan Greenberg](https://time.com/author/stan-greenberg/) Apr 21, 2017 6:39 PM UTC  U.S. President Donald Trump listens while meeting with women small business owners in the Roosevelt Room of the White House on March 27, 2017 in Washington, D.C. U.S. President Donald Trump listens while meeting with women small business owners in the Roosevelt Room of the White House on March 27, 2017 in Washington, D.C. Pool—Getty Images by [Page Gardner](https://time.com/author/page-gardner/) and [Stan Greenberg](https://time.com/author/stan-greenberg/) Apr 21, 2017 6:39 PM UTC President [Donald Trump](http://time.com/collection-post/4736323/donald-trump/) won the [2016 election](http://time.com/money/4565236/donald-trump-2016-election-win-gambling-bets/) partly because many Americans believed that a businessman not beholden to special interests could shake up [politics](http://time.com/section/politics/), get things done and reform government so it finally works for them. Some of those supporters are starting to worry. The surprisingly close contest in the congressional special election in ruby-red Georgia this week telegraphed possible doubts about whether the President and congressional Republicans can bring change. Now new [focus-group research](http://www.democracycorps.com/Battleground-Surveys/focus-groups-find-early-breakthrough-moment-in-off-years/) reveals the potential for these [Trump voters](http://time.com/4591112/time-person-of-the-year-donald-trump-voters/) to become disillusioned with his performance before he hits even 100 days. In late March, [Women’s Voices Women Vote Action Fund](https://www.wvwvaf.org/about-wvwvaf/) went to the battleground states of Virginia and Ohio to talk to 52 women who voted for and against Trump in the Presidential election. We talked with African American, white working-class, unmarried and older women, as well as Millennials, in six focus groups conducted by [Democracy Corps](http://www.democracycorps.com/about-us/). These are voters who have the power to determine the outcome of the 2018 midterms and beyond. As they reflected on what they learned about Trump’s budget and the failure of Republicans’ health care reform, they revealed top-of-mind worries about Trump’s ability to deliver on his campaign promises. Until now, the President’s voters have generally been unreceptive to criticisms of their man — particularly since they think that his opponents never accepted the election results and that Republican leaders never really supported him anyway. But the women we spoke with began articulating some deep worries in the face of now credible reports of the damage Trump’s policies would inflict on seniors, working- and middle-class Americans, and parents trying to raise children across the country. Some of Trump’s characteristics — once considered strengths — seem to now produce different conclusions. The mostly working-class women in the Ohio and Virginia focus groups now wonder: _Is it possible that Trump being raised with extreme wealth keeps him from seeing the struggles of everyday people?_ To propose massive increases in [military spending](http://time.com/4703218/donald-trump-white-house-budget/) and billions for the [border wall](http://time.com/4749678/mick-mulvaney-budget-border-wall-funding-government-shutdown/) (which they view as a vanity project) while cutting [Meals on Wheels](http://time.com/4704540/trump-budget-meals-wheels/), [after-school programs](http://time.com/4704661/trump-budget-after-school-programs/) and [cancer research](http://time.com/4736855/trump-health-military-budget/) signals Trump may never have walked a mile in their shoes. By supporting a [budget](http://time.com/money/4703511/budget-cuts-donald-trump-federal-agencies/) that benefits the rich and slashes services for working women and their families, and pushing a [health-care bill](http://time.com/4713107/donald-trump-transcript-ahca-bill/) that failed to deliver on Trump’s promise to make coverage more affordable, Trump may finally have forced a common ground between a group of formerly ardent supporters and Clinton voters — all of whom were dismayed when they saw the harm his budget policies would cause average Americans like themselves. While not particularly concerned by his billionaire [Cabinet](http://time.com/4632952/donald-trump-cabinet-confirmation-hearings-splits/), his priorities that put the wall and tax cuts for billionaires ahead of their families’ needs for affordable [health care](http://time.com/4716513/health-care-reform/) and help with older parents and their kids has elevated doubts with voters on both sides that Trump may be too rich and protected to see how much damage he could cause people like them. [Democrats](http://time.com/4733392/bernie-sanders-tom-perez-unity-tour/) hoping for a wave election in 2018 must reverse historically disappointing off-year turnout by these voters in 2010 and 2014\. To succeed, the party will need to motivate these women to register and turn out by introducing economic and job policies specifically designed to appeal to them. Many expressed in the focus groups how they’re living on the edge and that financial insecurity is an ever-present factor in their homes. It became clear: Voters who were unenthusiastic about Clinton and supported Trump may pull back from Trump and congressional Republicans as they learn more about the negative impact the President’s policies would have on their lives. Asked at the end of the sessions to write postcards to the President, several women offered their continued support, but asked him to keep their concerns in mind. In one representative sample, a woman wrote: “You have the potential to do good things — you have a great business sense but you need to find more compassion/empathy into what many Americans face. Focus on helping those in our country & not on what can cause more harm.” If Trump’s supporters’ doubts continue to grow in this fundamental way, it could impact the entire GOP in the year ahead. It could also provide Democrats with an opportunity to make substantial gains in 2018\. If Trump’s priorities put them out of touch with the very real needs of these everyday voters, the writing will be on the wall for the GOP long before Trump’s ever gets built. ## Transcript I Donald John Trump do solemnly swear That I will faithfully execute That I will faithfully execute The office of president of United States The office of president of United States [ MUSIC ] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4750602/trump-women-voters-doubts/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4750602/trump-women-voters-doubts/"},"headline":"Women Trump Voters Are Starting to Doubt Him","datePublished":"2017-04-21T18:39:25.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-04T07:44:45.905Z","description":"His strengths are now appearing to hurt his supporters","url":"https://time.com/4750602/trump-women-voters-doubts/","keywords":["politics","Donald Trump"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte42b9011185236c5/6988c352fb4eac3f9a891925/donald-trump-fox-interview.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Page Gardner","jobTitle":"","url":"https://time.com/author/page-gardner/"},{"@type":"Person","name":"Stan Greenberg","jobTitle":"","url":"https://time.com/author/stan-greenberg/"}],"articleSection":"Ideas","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte42b9011185236c5/6988c352fb4eac3f9a891925/donald-trump-fox-interview.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"President Trump Participates In Roundtable With Women Small Business Owners","caption":"President Trump Participates In Roundtable With Women Small Business Owners","creditText":"Pool—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/ideas/","name":"Ideas"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/politics/","name":"politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4750602/trump-women-voters-doubts/","name":"Women Trump Voters Are Starting to Doubt Him"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"President Trump's Approval Ratings Just Hit Another Low","description":"President Donald Trump’s approval ratings fell to 35% Tuesday — another new low for the president during his first months in office.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/TyNuUk3K/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2017-04-04T22:29:56.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/TyNuUk3K.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/4750602/trump-women-voters-doubts/","duration":"PT1M15S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/4750602/trump-women-voters-doubts/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```