Overview

• An Economist/YouGov poll conducted Sept. 26–29 of 1,656 U.S. adults (±3.4%) found Kimmel at 44% favorable/41% unfavorable (+3) versus Trump at 41%/54% (−13), a 16-point net gap.
• On his Oct. 6 show, Kimmel declared he was “more popular than the president,” joked that a “toenail in your salad” outpolled Trump, and urged releasing the Epstein files, citing broad public support.
• White House spokesperson Anna Kelly responded by citing Trump’s 77 million votes and claiming Kimmel’s ratings fell 64% week over week, punctuating the statement with “Sad!”
• After Disney/ABC briefly suspended then reinstated the program, Kimmel’s Sept. 23 return drew roughly 6.2–6.3 million viewers, with subsequent Nielsen estimates sliding toward pre-suspension levels and an 85% drop in the 25–54 demo from the spike.
• The poll also found 55% of respondents said Kimmel’s comments did not warrant canceling his show, while 30% said they did.