How popular is Congress?
As of July 1, 2026
Critical Analysis
Find answers to the following questions using the visual above, your big brain, the information provided and any links below:
What percent of the population approves of the current congress?
What year shown in the graph above had the highest approval of Congress?
Identify one trend from the graph above.
Do you approve of the current congress?
Why do you think congressional approval is at its current level?
President Trump currently has a 35% approval rating. Explain why Trump is twice as popular as Congress.
Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution lays out one of the main jobs of the Congress — making laws. Through August 31, 2026, Congress has enacted just 34 public bills into law during the 2026 calendar year, representing a historic low in legislative productivity. At this same point in the previous midterm cycle, 93 public bills had become law—nearly three times the 2026 total. Why do you think Congress is not exercising one of its main powers?
We have a bicameral legislature consisting of a House and Senate. How would having a unicameral (one chamber) legislature impact Congressional approval?
Political polarization is the divergence of political attitudes away from the center, towards ideological extremes. Explain the connection between political polarization and congressional approval.
Explain how the data from the chart above might impact the decision of a potential congressional candidate to enter politics.
Write and Discuss
Take ten minutes to write about the question at the top of the page and then discuss with your classmates.
Act on your Learning
Contact your member of Congress and tell them whether you approve of the work they are doing them and why.
Get Creative
If the congress was an emoji, what would it be?
Learning Extension*
Check out the latest Gallup Polling data on congressional approval. Caution: intended for mature audiences. Viewer discretion advised. Look through this list of members of the current 119th Congress. Now imagine you could ask any of them to go get a coffee. Who would you ask?
America is voting in our 2026 Midterm Elections! Can you predict which party will win control of Congress?
The winner of our classroom contest will win a $50 Amazon gift card for themselves and a $50 Amazon gift card for their teacher! To enter, complete your predictions in our online contest before midnight on November 3, 2026.
If you liked today’s bell ringer, become a member of our Liberty Bell Ringer Club and get access to our archive of over 1000 visual lessons tagged by content and unit plus a whole lot more…
Teaching AP Government is a marathon, and every class period needs a strong start. The Liberty Bell Ringer Membership gives you an archive of 1,000+ ready-to-go bell ringers. But it doesn't stop there. When it's time to mix things up, dig into a growing library of whole-class games your students will actually enjoy. And when May draws near the built-in exam prep has you covered. Cancel at any time. Use promo code SIGNMEUP at checkout to get the first month of our monthly subscription for free!
Activities
Archive
