Republicans hope the Make America Healthy Again movement will become a permanent fixture of the big GOP tent. But the party cannot count on its support in the midterm elections this November.
New results from a Politico poll reflect both widespread disappointment and dissatisfaction with the Trump administration on health priorities and opportunities for Democrats to make inroads with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s MHA supporters.
Most Americans associate the MAHA with the Republican Party, but not by much, and most believe the Trump administration has not done enough to “make America healthy again” – including a 41 percent plurality of Trump’s own 2024 voters.
The growing political movement, which officials in both parties credit with helping President Donald Trump win in 2024, has already begun to reshape the GOP’s approach to health policy — driving everything from a redesign of the food pyramid to a rollback in vaccine recommendations.
However, at the same time, many survey respondents see Democrats in a better position on the movement’s key health priorities. For example, they were more likely to say the Democratic Party could be trusted to make the country healthier and were more eager to improve health in America, while less likely to say the same about Republicans. On the other hand, the GOP is seen as more likely to be influenced than the Democrats by lobbyists for the food and pesticide industries, who are among the MHA movement’s top foes.
These ideas could have real consequences in a midterm election year when very small margins in voting could determine control of Congress. And Democrats are excited about turning voter frustration with the Trump administration’s policies into a blue wave this cycle.
GOP policy consultant Abby McCloskey said, “The MHA movement started with a lot of energy in the (2024) campaign cycle, and created more energy for these types of issues that had not previously been associated with the GOP.” the one who warned That Republicans are “wasting their big moment.”
“Since then, I think the energy has gone out of perspective as to what is the federal government going to do about this?” He said.
Overall, 47 percent of survey respondents say they support the MHA movement, including nearly a third of voters who supported former Vice President Kamala Harris in 2024 and nearly a third of Americans who plan to vote for a Democrat this November. By comparison, 70 percent of Trump 2024 voters say they support the MHA movement.
However, Americans do not consider the health of the country a top issue; It saw the same level of priority as “vocalism” and opioid abuse. When asked to choose between priorities for the US government, a majority ranked improving the health of Americans above curbing illegal immigration or cutting crime – but below concerns related to affordability and cost of living.
And there are still widespread misconceptions about what MAHA is and what it does – even among those who identify with the movement. Only a third of Americans say they have heard of the MHA movement can Explain what it is. Another third say they have heard of MAHA, but may listen No Make this clear, including 31 percent of people who consider themselves part of the movement. One in four Americans had not heard of the movement at all.
The survey points to an opportunity for Democrats if they can speak effectively to the movement’s most popular issues and highlights that Republicans’ advantage with MHA is far from guaranteed.
“The people we would call ‘maha’ voters are not partisans. They are actually up for grabs,” Rep. Lauren Underwood (D-Ill.) told reporters on a recent call organized by the progressive advocacy group 314 Action, which is working to elect people with health and science backgrounds to public office. “(Republicans) have really taken actions to alienate those people, to break the promises they made. They’re no longer focused on the core principles of the Make America Healthy Again platform in order to please Donald Trump and push their policy agenda.”
Despite pressure from its MHA supporters to crack down on pesticide companies, food manufacturers, and drug manufacturers, the Trump administration has largely pursued a deregulation agenda. Her recent choice to make it easier for Bayer to expand production of its herbicide Roundup has particularly angered MHA supporters, who have said the move makes it harder for them to continue supporting GOP candidates in the November midterms.
Kennedy’s own allies have warned Republicans that they cannot take MHA voters lightly in November. Tony Lyons, president of MAHA Action, a political advocacy group supporting Kennedy’s agenda, said in a memo obtained by POLITICO last month that the GOP is only “renting MAHA voters” but not being able to “buy” them.
The Politico poll also found that the issues self-identified MHA supporters consider most important were Democrats supporting them more often than Republicans, such as preventing the spread of infectious diseases, tighter regulation of “forever chemicals” and expanding access to reproductive health care.
That’s not necessarily surprising, since many voters who support MHA’s goals have generally been Democrats, said Rodney Whitlock, a longtime GOP congressional aide turned health care strategist.
Meanwhile, less popular among MHA respondents are some policies the GOP has embraced: restricting abortion access and reducing the number of vaccines Americans can get.
Yet the movement still aligns with and supports some Republican food policies and initiatives. For example, 80 percent of MHA respondents support removing artificial colors from food and 72 percent support restricting the purchase of junk food in federal nutrition programs, both priorities tackled by the Trump administration.
Lyons has urged Republicans to talk more about Kennedy’s policy goals, including discouraging Americans from eating ultraprocessed foods, during the campaign. He warned that if they fail to do so and disaffected MHA voters leave the party or stay home in November, Democrats could take control of Congress, subjecting Kennedy to monitoring hearings and preventing his policy and regulatory efforts from moving forward.
Lyons did not respond to a request for comment on this story.
Politico Poll Results – Together Other recent polls show declining trust The Trump administration’s health recommendations reveal a potential vulnerability for Republicans.
House Majority Forward, a nonprofit affiliated with the House Democratic leadership, surveyed voters in February and March in several battleground districts the party is hoping to flip this fall. group surveys, First shared with POLITICOfound that more voters in Colorado, Iowa, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania disliked Kennedy and his performance as Health Secretary than viewed him favorably.
Carly Cooperman, a Democratic pollster and CEO of Shawn Cooperman Research, said, “This is an opportunity for Democrats to start talking about making foods healthier and reducing the chemicals in the food we’re giving them… you know, limiting pesticide use, increasing physical activity, removing artificial colors.”
A growing number of House and Senate Democrats — challengers and incumbents alike — are taking this advice seriously.
They are starting by focusing on pesticide use, which has become a political tension point for Trump’s GOP coalition, pitting the MHA movement against powerful agriculture industry interests that have long been loyal to Republicans and hold significant influence with the administration.
Democratic lawmakers have criticized the Trump administration in social media posts, floor speeches and hearings for signing an executive order promoting domestic production of the pesticide glyphosate and for taking Bayer’s side in a case pending before the Supreme Court that could shield the company from liability for the health effects of its products. Democratic lawmakers, along with a handful of Republicans, are introducing bills and amendments that would undo or reverse these actions.
A Politico poll found that limiting pesticide use is widely popular, with more than two-thirds of respondents in support of doing so. And because of MHA’s dissatisfaction with the Trump administration’s stance—some leaders within the movement threatened to primary farm-state Republicans in early August last year—Democrats could seize another opportunity.
“We’re not even sure we have a path forward in this administration on pesticides, because it’s very clear that they are completely owned by Bayer and the chemical companies,” said Kelly Ryerson, an MHA influencer who goes by the online moniker Glyphosate Girl and publicly supports Kennedy.
Progressive advocates also say Democrats would be wise to take advantage of the growing frustration among MHA voters.
Shaughnessy Naughton, president of 314 Action, whose group is supporting Democratic challengers across the country, said, “It’s a real concern that there is unhealthy food in our food supply, and this administration is making it worse.”
Still, even though a section of the MHA appears to be beholden to the GOP – and Kennedy – some of their agendas garnered broad support among survey respondents, from removing artificial food colorings to offering whole milk in schools. Although MHA respondents did not rank Kennedy’s stance on vaccines high on their list of importance, a notable share of Americans Are Highly skeptical of current needs.
The Politico poll found that 41 percent of respondents across all parties support reducing the number of vaccines Americans receive, with Republicans significantly more likely to hold this view. 58 percent of Trump 2024 voters support reducing the number of vaccines Americans receive, while 29 percent of Harris 2024 voters support it.
Broad support for some of the MAHA’s key positions — particularly among Trump 2024 voters — and approval of some of the administration’s actions on health, suggest Republicans may still be able to leverage popular elements of the platform to win over voters in November.
Since health is so low on the list of Americans’ concerns, it is unlikely to be a deciding factor in how they vote this midterm. Still, that doesn’t mean Republicans should become complacent and assume MAHA’s priorities won’t matter at all, Republican strategist Whitlock warned.
“Republicans have to operate from an ‘everything matters’ perspective,” he said. “Separation is political suicide.”
