Jimmy Kimmel has never been one to shy away from his critics — least of all Donald Trump. And after a new YouGov poll showed that Kimmel is more popular than the former president, the Jimmy Kimmel Live! host took a moment during Monday’s monologue to celebrate the unlikely milestone with a victory lap that was part gloating, part self-deprecation, and entirely Kimmel.

“I did get some exciting news this weekend,” he told his audience. “According to a new poll from YouGov, which is a serious polling site, or they were before this, I am more popular than the President of the United States.”

The studio erupted in cheers before he could even finish the sentence. Kimmel grinned, riding the applause. “That’s right,” he said. “The ‘no ratings’ TV host is actually more popular than the President of the United States.”

A Poll With a Punchline

The YouGov survey found that more than 50% of respondents had a favorable view of Kimmel, compared to just 40% for Trump — a 16-point gap that’s all the more striking given Trump’s dominance in political headlines and Kimmel’s repeated criticisms of him over the years.

Just 41% of people surveyed viewed Kimmel unfavorably, compared to 54% for Trump. For a late-night host whom Trump regularly mocks as a “moron” and a “failure,” that data felt like poetic justice.

In true Kimmel fashion, he took the numbers as both validation and ammunition. “Apparently, Trump’s team wasn’t thrilled,” Kimmel said, before reading a mock statement parodying the former president’s tone:

“‘Over 77 million Americans showed up on election day to cast their ballots for President Donald J. Trump, who is delivering on his overwhelming mandate to put America first. Jimmy Kimmel prays every night to garner a fraction of that support to keep his show on air after ratings dropped 64% last week. Sad!’”

He paused, looking up at the crowd. “That’s a real statement,” he added with faux sincerity. “Probably dictated from a golf cart.”

From “No Ratings” to a Ratings Rebound

Ironically, Kimmel’s real numbers tell a different story. After his brief suspension from ABC last month, Jimmy Kimmel Live! has roared back with its strongest ratings in years. His return episode drew over 8.6 million viewers — the highest in the show’s history — and Jimmy Kimmel Live! dominated the 11:35 p.m. slot for the week of September 22, outperforming Colbert and Fallon in both total viewers and the 18–49 demographic.

The resurgence has been seen as both a rebuke to his critics and a testament to Kimmel’s staying power. In an era when network late-night has been declared “dead” more times than anyone can count, he’s proving that politically charged comedy can still draw a mass audience.

The Suspension That Fueled the Feud

Kimmel’s victory lap comes just weeks after ABC suspended the host for a monologue referencing right-wing activist Charlie Kirk’s death. The suspension — widely criticized as an overreaction to political pressure — triggered a weeklong hiatus and renewed debate over censorship in late-night television.

While Disney executives have refused to elaborate on the decision, industry insiders say the network faced threats from conservative broadcasting giants Nexstar and Sinclair, which had reportedly planned to preempt Jimmy Kimmel Live! from their affiliates unless action was taken.

ABC reinstated Kimmel within a week, after public outcry and support from fans, fellow hosts, and even rival networks. “The irony is that the suspension only made him bigger,” said one ABC executive. “The audience came back to see what he’d say next.”

When Kimmel finally returned, he didn’t just pick up where he left off — he doubled down. His first night back included a fiery monologue defending free speech and mocking the corporate caution that had briefly silenced him.

Trump, Kimmel, and the Long War of Words

If Kimmel’s poll victory felt personal, that’s because his feud with Trump has become one of the most enduring in modern pop culture. The two have traded insults for years, with Trump frequently lashing out at Kimmel on Truth Social and at rallies.

In 2018, Trump accused Kimmel of “kissing my ass” before turning on him “like a dog.” Kimmel responded on-air: “If I kissed his ass, I would have been electrocuted — it’s full of spray tan.”

Since then, their dynamic has evolved into something more symbolic: Kimmel as the mouthpiece of late-night’s anti-Trump resistance, Trump as the embodiment of the cultural forces trying to muzzle it.

Trump’s hostility hasn’t deterred Kimmel; if anything, it’s become part of the show’s DNA. “The thing about Trump,” Kimmel said earlier this year, “is he’s the one gift that keeps on giving — to comedians, not democracy.”

Late Night as Political Frontline

Kimmel’s late-night rebirth reflects a broader truth about the genre: political comedy is now both riskier and more essential than ever.

Stephen Colbert’s Late Show remains a hub for anti-Trump satire, though its days are numbered following CBS’s announcement that it will end in 2026. Seth Meyers continues his detailed “A Closer Look” dissections of current events. And even Jimmy Fallon — once the apolitical counterpoint to the rest — has been pulled into the cultural crossfire, fielding criticism for staying “too safe” amid political upheaval.

But Kimmel has leaned all the way in. His political edge, honed during the Trump years, has turned him into one of the few mainstream network personalities willing to take direct aim at the administration and its media allies.

In the process, he’s transformed Jimmy Kimmel Live! from a Hollywood-variety hybrid into a kind of comedic nightly op-ed — complete with skits, sincerity, and righteous fury.

The Poll Heard Round Late Night

That transformation makes his latest poll numbers more than a punchline. They represent how late-night hosts like Kimmel have become political figures in their own right — shaping opinion, sparking backlash, and outlasting the politicians they mock.

When Kimmel quipped that he was “more popular than the President,” it wasn’t just a gag. It was, in its own way, a reflection of shifting cultural authority. For millions of Americans, late-night hosts have replaced traditional pundits as their preferred interpreters of the day’s madness.

And for a host whose humor often blurs into activism — from monologues about gun violence and healthcare to attacks on hypocrisy in both parties — the idea that he could outpoll a sitting president speaks to something deeper than fandom.

It’s about trust.

Fallout and Forward Motion

Whether Trump responds directly this time remains to be seen, though history suggests he will. The former president has never been one to let an insult — or a poll — go unanswered.

But even if the political back-and-forth continues, Kimmel has reason to celebrate. His show’s ratings are steady, his cultural relevance is sharper than ever, and his platform remains secure after weathering corporate pressure that might have sunk a less tenacious host.

In the weeks since his reinstatement, Kimmel’s monologues have drawn consistent viral attention, with clips shared by both fans and critics. His mixture of dry humor and open defiance has struck a chord in an industry where self-censorship often wins out.

The Larger Battle: Late Night’s Identity

Kimmel’s success underscores the existential question facing late-night television: what is it supposed to be now? Entertainment? Commentary? Catharsis?

In an era when traditional TV viewership continues to erode and political tensions run high, the hosts who survive are those who evolve. Colbert became a political powerhouse; Meyers carved out a niche for analytical humor. Fallon remains the entertainer. Kimmel, increasingly, is the agitator — unafraid to be the story as well as the storyteller.

That stance makes him divisive, but also indispensable. His willingness to spar with politicians, corporations, and his own network has turned Jimmy Kimmel Live! into a case study in how late-night can still matter.

Closing Thoughts

When Jimmy Kimmel joked that he was “more popular than the President,” it was delivered with the same twinkle that’s carried him through 20 years on the air. But underneath the humor was a hard-won truth: in 2025, being funny isn’t enough. To stay relevant, a late-night host has to stand for something.

For Kimmel, that something is simple — calling out hypocrisy wherever he sees it, even if it earns him a suspension, a scolding from Disney, or another volley of insults from Trump himself.

If the poll is right, audiences are rewarding him for it.

And in a media landscape where politics and entertainment have fused beyond recognition, maybe that’s the real punchline: the comedian outpolling the commander-in-chief.