Fox News Loses Viewers Before Midterm Elections

Fox News, the most-watched cable news channel in the United States, lost about 28% of its evening viewers in the four weeks before the midterm elections. That means roughly one in four regular viewers stopped tuning in during that stretch. Experts say the drop could be a sign that Republican supporters are less fired up about this election than in past years. The decline happened between late September and late October, just weeks before voters headed to the polls.

During those four weeks, Fox News averaged about 2 million viewers each evening, according to data from Nielsen, the company that tracks TV audiences. Other cable news channels saw their numbers go up during the same period. MS NOW gained 15% more viewers, reaching about 1.16 million, and CNN grew 16%, averaging around 644,000 viewers each night.

Experts believe Fox News viewership is closely tied to how popular President Donald Trump is. Jon Klein, a former executive at CBS News and CNN, put it bluntly. 'They live or die based on the president's poll approval ratings and in general, the popularity of MAGA,' he said. Trump's approval rating fell to just 32% last week in a poll from Reuters and Ipsos, which is the lowest it has been for him.

The Republican Party is also facing tough political headwinds heading into the election. Democrats are currently favored to win both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Voters are worried about the cost of living, a controversial war in Iran, and new taxes called tariffs on imported goods. These issues have made things harder for Republicans and may have driven down enthusiasm among Fox News fans.

Some well-known Trump supporters have also pulled back their backing of the president. Popular podcaster Joe Rogan, who once loudly supported Trump, has become much quieter about it. Reece Peck, a professor who wrote a book about Fox News, said that while Fox still has loyal older viewers, this election just does not inspire people to tune in like past ones did. 'The current election cycle just does not inspire the urge to watch your favourite show,' Peck said.

Fox News pushed back on the idea that it is struggling. The network pointed out that it still commands more than half of all cable news viewers during the day, beating CNN and MS NOW combined. 'Fox News has been the number one network in cable news for nearly a quarter century, through every administration since 2001,' the network said in a statement. It also said it leads YouTube with nearly 4 billion video views so far this year, which is 1 billion more than its closest competitor.

There are also bigger changes happening across the TV industry that affect all cable news channels. More and more people are switching from cable TV to online platforms like YouTube for their news and entertainment. Paul Hardart, a professor at New York University, said that cable channels across the board are seeing fewer viewers for this reason. He also noted that Fox News actually did better when Democrat Joe Biden was president, because political news channels often get a boost when they can push back against the party in power.

Changes to how Nielsen measures viewers may also play a role in the numbers going forward. The National Football League raised concerns that the new measurement methods could hurt audience counts for many TV programs. These changes were introduced in 2026 and could affect how all cable channels, including Fox News, report their viewership. Experts say it will take time to understand how much the new methods change the picture.