Gas prices are at levels never before seen in October, and President Donald Trump is now promising relief – but only after Election Day.
The national average for a gallon of regular is $4.27, according to motor club AAA, and NBC News reported that it’s the first time gas has ever averaged more than $4 a gallon in October, a month when prices usually dip. A year before Trump’s re-election, in October 2024, the average was $3.13.
Trump has recently said gas will drop as low as $2 a gallon after the election, suggesting Iran will be willing to end its conflict with the U.S. by then.
On the 2024 campaign trail, Trump vowed to “cut energy prices in half or more than that within 12 months of taking office,” telling the Economic Club of New York that “we’re going down and getting gasoline below $2 a gallon, bringing down the price of everything.”
Instead, gas costs about twice that. Prices had been easing, falling as low as $2.80 in early 2026, but they surged after the U.S. and Israel launched a war with Iran in late February and disrupted global oil supplies.
Electricity prices are up 8.4 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis since Trump returned to office. The White House pointed to a decline since May, but that drop is just 0.9 percent. Higher fuel costs have also driven up grocery prices, because farmers pay more to run equipment and it costs more to truck food to stores.
The Trump administration had argued that ramping up U.S. drilling would bring prices down. Oil production has risen, but NBC News reported the increase has been at a similar pace as under President Joe Biden, and it has been offset by the drop in oil flowing out of the Middle East.
The $2 gas pledge is one of several promises Trump has made on the campaign trail that depend on Republicans keeping power, including $5,000 checks for every American adult.
The timing could hardly be worse for the GOP. In NBC’s latest poll, Trump’s approval rating sank to 34 percent, the lowest of his second term. Just 18 percent of Americans said their finances have improved over the past year, and voters are now evenly split on which party would better handle the economy, an issue where Republicans once had the advantage.
“Any way one slices it, general affordability in the U.S. economy has deteriorated notably since Mr. Trump returned to office,” said Joe Brusuelas, chief economist for RSM. “Almost all of it can be traced back to distinct policy choices on the part of the White House.”