‘The Opposite of What Americans Voted For’: How Trump’s 2024 Victory Led to Voter Regret

Photo Courtesy of Business Insider

As Donald Trump began his second presidential term, a noticeable wave of regret emerged from the very voters that helped put him back in office. The early days of 2025 were not marked by celebration but by second thoughts and frustration. Notably, the voters who are scared of the tariff-induced market crash are beginning to admit that this is not what they voted for. 

While campaigning, Trump promised lower prices for the average American’s expenses. But instead, the country has gone into financial chaos. Whit Ayres, the Grand Old Party’s (GOP) pollster said, “Higher prices and slower growth are exactly the opposite of what Americans voted for.” 

Wall Street executives who cheered on Trump’s election in hopes he would boost the economy are starting to fret, publicly urging the White House to rein in its trade war. Republican lawmakers are eyeing the daily stock market and are bracing for the political fallout, as constituents’ retirement funds dry up and employers stop hiring. 

As markets whipsawed on Monday, Republican lawmakers began urging the White House to dial back its tariffs, with Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, a loyal Trump ally, criticizing the “voices in the White House that want high tariffs forever.” 

The president vowed to veto bipartisan legislation that would empower Congress to end the tariffs and later dashed hopes that he would agree to pursue them while his administration negotiates with various countries. “We are not looking at that,” said Trump in the Oval Office, calling it an “honor” to wage a global trade war. 

Additionally, voters reportedly regret their vote after seeing who was appointed to the President’s cabinet. For example, no one thought that within weeks of Trump’s victory, he would allow Elon Musk, founder of Tesla, to have access to and control over every taxpayer’s personal information through the United States Treasury. 

Another addition to the cabinet was Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a dropout of the 2024 presidential race. Emily Anderson of Minnesota told the Wall Street Journal that she had originally planned on voting for Kennedy Jr., but when he endorsed Trump, she decided to vote for him instead. She now calls this the “biggest mistake of [her] life.”

Especially after seeing Kennedy Jr.'s ideas and lack of knowledge in healthcare, after being appointed to the Department of Health and Human Services, she continued to say, “I feel so stupid, guilty, regretful…I am absolutely embarrassed that I voted for Trump.” 

More American voters, like Amy Tarkanian of Nevada, have spoken up about their thoughts since Trump’s victory and the work he has done. She served as the chair for the Nevada Republican Party, but now regrets her votes in the past elections. She says, “I think he seems to enjoy chaos, and I’m tired of it.”

As the realities of Trump’s second term come to light and continue to unfold, the gap between campaign promises and lived experiences becomes wider. For many Americans, their “hope” in 2024 has turned into regret.