WASHINGTON – As the government shutdown persists with no resolution in sight, a recent AP-NORC poll reveals that a majority of Americans perceive it as a significant issue, attributing blame to all key players involved.

Approximately 60% of Americans hold President Donald Trump and Congressional Republicans largely responsible, with 54% also pointing fingers at Congressional Democrats, according to the survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. The findings indicate that over three-quarters of the population feel each group deserves at least moderate blame, highlighting the universal perception of shared accountability.

Conducted amid the third week of the shutdown, the survey emerges as political leaders caution that this could become the longest shutdown in U.S. history. Democrats are pushing for an extension of tax credits that have enabled millions to afford health insurance since the pandemic, while Republicans insist on passing a government funding bill before negotiating further.

This deadlock has turned into a strategic communications battle, with each party hoping to sway public opinion against the other. The stakes are particularly high for Democrats, who are seeking a common cause to unify around as they prepare for the crucial 2026 midterm elections.

The poll suggests that public discontent is slightly more directed at the ruling party. About half of Americans assign Trump the highest level of responsibility for the shutdown, aligning closely with those who blame Congressional Republicans, but surpassing the 40% who hold Democrats equally accountable.

Sophia Cole, a 38-year-old Republican mother from St. Louis, placed equal blame for the shutdown on Trump and Congress. Cole, who described herself as a Trump supporter, said both sides “should be able to come together” on a compromise but believes it is ultimately the Republican president’s responsibility to broker a deal.

“We’re dependent on him to get the House and everyone to vote the way that he needs them to vote,” Cole said.

Democrats and independents more likely to call the shutdown a ‘major issue’

The effects of the shutdown are beginning to be felt across the country. Flights have been delayed, and hundreds of thousands of federal employees who are furloughed or working without pay are starting to miss paychecks.

The poll finds that 54% of U.S. adults call the shutdown a “major issue,” with just 11% saying it is “not a problem at all.” Democrats are most likely, at 69%, to see it as a major problem, but 59% of independents and 37% of Republicans feel the same way.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said this week the country is “barreling toward one of the longest shutdowns in American history.” The last shutdown, during Trump’s first term, went to for a record 35 days and drew similar public sentiment, with Democrats more likely than Republicans to see it as a major problem.

The White House has warned the impact of the shutdown could be worse this time. While roughly 2 million service members were paid on time this week, the administration has used the federal workforce as leverage, and last weekend it began following through on threats to lay off federal workers. But on Wednesday, a federal judge in California temporarily blocked the firings, saying they appeared to be politically motivated and were being carried out without much thought.

“Things are just going to keep getting worse for federal workers,” said Angie Santiago, a 60-year-old Democrat from Miami. “If people like me are struggling, I can’t imagine what federal workers are going through.”

Santiago, who is on disability while her husband works, said she fears the shutdown will worsen economic hardship across the country. Santiago said during a phone interview that she began regularly going to food banks about a year ago.

“I’m calling you from a food line,” she said. “You’re going to see more of these lines popping up. It’s going to get bad.”

More favor than oppose extending health care subsidies

At the center of the shutdown is a stalemate over federal tax credits for people who buy health insurance through the Affordable Care Act marketplace. Democrats want the credits extended, while Republicans say they will discuss the issue only once the government reopens.

The poll shows that roughly 4 in 10 U.S. adults support extending the tax credits, while about 1 in 10 oppose it outright. A large share, 42%, have no opinion, suggesting many Americans are not closely following the core dispute driving the shutdown.

Jason Beck, a Republican who is a self-employed insurance agent in Utah, uses the Affordable Care Act marketplace for his own insurance and supports extending the tax credits.

“I know a lot of the shutdown is over health insurance, and I’d rather just keep it the same way it is now,” Beck said of the subsidies.

Democrats say that keeping health insurance prices the same is central to their fight and that prices will skyrocket if Congress doesn’t do anything. But even Beck, who is on the Democrats’ side with the subsidies, still places equal blame for the shutdown on Democrats, Republicans and Trump.

“Trump’s blaming the Democrats, and the Democrats are blaming the Republicans,” Beck said. “We’re stuck because there’s no middle ground anymore.”

Neither party sees a substantial bump in favorability

Both parties have framed the shutdown as a prelude to the 2026 midterms, with Democrats aiming to flip the House. So far, however, it doesn’t appear to have meaningfully shifted opinions about either party.

About 3 in 10 U.S. adults have a “somewhat” or “very” favorable view of the Democratic Party, in line with an AP-NORC poll from September. Four in 10 have a “somewhat” or “very” favorable view of the Republican Party, similar to last month.

Confidence in Congress, meanwhile, remains extremely low. Only about 4% of Americans say they have “a great deal” of confidence in the way Congress is being run, while 43% have “only some” confidence and about half have “hardly any” confidence.

But the poll suggests that health care could be a helpful issue for Democrats down the road. The poll found that 38% of Americans trust Democrats to do a better job handling health care, while only 25% trust Republicans more. About 1 in 10 trust both equally, and 25% trust neither.

Rob Redding, a 49-year-old independent voter from New York, supports extending ACA subsidies and credits Democrats for defending them.

Redding said Democrats holding the line on the ACA subsidies is probably one of the most valiant and gutsy things he’s ever seen them do.

“And,” Redding said, “I think that it’s the right call.”

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The AP-NORC poll of 1,289 adults was conducted Oct. 9-13, using a sample drawn from NORC’s probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for adults overall is plus or minus 3.8 percentage points.

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Follow the AP’s coverage of the federal government shutdown at https://apnews.com/hub/government-shutdown.