Study: Trump approved 90% of requests from Republican states and 23% from Democratic ones — Fortune
A U.S. study of major disaster declarations found a significant difference in the share of approved requests for federal aid depending on the party affiliation of state leadership. During President Donald Trump’s second term, nearly 90% of requests from states where the governor and both senators are Republicans were approved, compared with 23% from states where Democrats hold those offices, Fortune reports.
Federal aid decisions
The study analyzed about 2,500 disaster declarations since the establishment of the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in 1979. It covered states where the governor and both senators belonged either to the Republican or Democratic Party.
According to the data cited, the Trump administration rejected 26% of requests for major disaster declarations in 2025. This was more than twice the rate of the previous year and higher than the average rejection rate of 15% over the past two decades.
Colorado, where the governor and senators are Democrats, received denials for both of its aid appeals in 2025. These were the state’s first denials since the 1980s. By contrast, in June Trump announced $416 million for Florida to address the consequences of disasters, without specifying which event the funds concerned.
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Costs for local communities
A separate analysis of FEMA data conducted by Andrew Rumbach, a senior fellow at the Urban Institute, showed that during Trump’s second term, about 84% of requests from states he won in the 2024 election were approved. For states where Trump lost, the figure was about 42%.
The White House denies that political factors influence decisions on aid after disasters. At the same time, according to the report, FEMA is expected to reimburse local authorities nearly $10 billion for recovery work that cities and communities have already paid for. If a disaster declaration is denied, communities may have to cover costs amounting to 15% of their annual budget.
The report also notes that charitable, volunteer, and community organizations are expanding assistance to affected communities, but cannot fully replace federal funding.
