The State of the Union Address aired on Tuesday, February 24, during which President Donald Trump provided an update to the American public.
Taking place before a joint session of Congress at the U.S. Capitol, the address made history as the longest State of the Union ever, clocking in at roughly an hour and forty minutes. While Trump focused on his immigration policy, the address came amid public backlash over tariffs, ICE, and low approval ratings.
Additionally, the address comes in advance of the midterm elections that could determine which party holds power in the legislature for the next two years. Considering the intrigue surrounding the address, we’re breaking down everything you need to know about the ratings stats so far. Scroll down for a closer look and stay tuned for more as details are released.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Trump’s 107-minute speech drew about 27.8 million viewers across the seven most-watched broadcast and cable outlets — ABC, CBS, CNN, Fox News, the Fox broadcast network, MS Now, and NBC. According to the publication, this is down about 12% from Trump’s last address to Congress in 2025, which brought in 31.45 million viewers.
Kenny Holston-Pool / Getty Images
According to the outlet, Fox News garnered a lion’s share of the audience with 9.1 million viewers, well ahead of ABC, which followed with 5.1 million viewers.
The publication reported that Fox News was the top network for the speech for the sixth straight year, outdrawing NBC, which drew 3.6 million viewers, CBS with 3.3 million, and the Fox broadcast network with 2.1 million. MSNBC and CNN trailed behind with 2.4 million and 2.2 million viewers, respectively.
Compared to previous years, an estimated 36.6 million people watched Trump’s address to a joint session of Congress on March 4, 2025, according to Nielsen. By contrast, Nielsen reported that 32.2 million viewers tuned in to President Joe Biden’s 2024 State of the Union address on March 7, 2024.
Compared to former President Barack Obama, Nielsen reports that his first address to a joint session of Congress in 2009 brought in 52.4 million viewers, but viewership steadily dwindled until 2016, when his State of the Union pulled in an audience of 31.3 million viewers.
The State of the Union Address was nearly two hours long, concluding at one hour and 47 minutes, surpassing former President Bill Clinton‘s previous record of one hour and 28 minutes in 2000. Technically, Trump surpassed Clinton’s record for the longest speech to a joint session of Congress when he spoke for an hour and 39 minutes in 2025, but it must be noted that it wasn’t the official State of the Union.
According to early reports, Trump’s 2026 address was viewed the least favorably by the public compared to his past addresses in 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2025. Per CNN, only 38 percent of viewers received the speech positively in 2026, whereas Trump’s first address back in 2017 was at 57 percent.
When President Barack Obama delivered his final State of the Union Address in 2015, around 32 million people tuned in, which was the smallest crowd for the politician during his years in service. Meanwhile, just over 36 million tuned into Trump’s 2025 speech, making 2026’s numbers that much more intriguing once they’re available.
As for President Joe Biden, his last State of the Union drummed up just over 32 million viewers in 2024, which was up over 2023’s speech.
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Originally published on tvinsider.com, part of the BLOX Digital Content Exchange.
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