Pete Hegseth ranked as LEAST popular Cabinet member amid Iran war… as an unlikely successor 'begs' Trump for a role

By JON MICHAEL RAASCH, US POLITICAL REPORTER Published: 18:40, 25 April 2026 | Updated: 18:55, 25 April 2026 Americans overwhelmingly disapprove of Secretary of War Pete Hegseth as the US war with Iran nears its eighth week, and one ambitious Trump ally eyes the Pentagon post as his 'dream job.' Hegseth has a abominable 32 percent approval rating, according to the latest Daily Mail/JL Partners poll of over 1,000 US voters. Meanwhile, the Pentagon boss's disapproval rating is 39 percent.  Though Hegseth is treading water with Republicans, garnering a 56 percent approval among conservatives, he is underwater with independents, with just over a quarter of them approving of his leadership, 26 percent.  Over half of the Democratic respondents - 52 percent - disapprove of the Secretary's job performance, while just 14 percent approve.  Though a White House official told the Daily Mail that Hegseth continues to have a good relationship with the President, recent Cabinet-level firings have spurred reports that some of Trump's allies, like Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, may be gunning for what could be soon-to-be-vacant positions. 'Ron was begging me to be AG,' Trump told a confidant recently after having lunch with the Governor in Florida, Axios reported. Another source told the outlet that 'DeSantis is 100 percent not interested in the AG job, but he would be interested in two things: War secretary or Supreme Court, which would be his dream job.' Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has just a 32 percent approval rating, according to the latest Daily Mail/JL Partners poll  Your browser does not support iframes. President Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. DeSantis is reportedly interested in becoming the next Secretary of War DeSantis himself recently said he's 'got more in the tank,' when asked about his future after his second term as Governor ends.  When pressed by journalist Graham Bensinger about reports he was considered to lead the Pentagon after the 2024 election, the Governor said he was never asked.    'It's never anything I've aspired to do, but at the same time, I'm a service-oriented guy, like, if I can be beneficial. So I would never rule anything out.' The Pentagon boss has been one of Trump's most aggressive advocates for the Iran war, describing its Revolutionary Guard Corps as a 'gang of pirates with a flag.' Hegseth held an on-camera briefing with reporters on Friday morning, claiming that the US retains control of the Strait of Hormuz and issuing a stark warning to Iran. 'If Iran is putting mines in the water, or otherwise threatening American commercial shipping or American forces, we will shoot to destroy,' he pledged.  Even if Trump does replace Hegseth, there are concerns among GOP lawmakers about the timing of any more Cabinet departures.  'The number of working days are very limited,' Senator Thom Tillis recently told Politico of the amount of time left to get Senate-confirmed Cabinet members through the Republican controlled Senate.  'You just do the math. It's a very compressed schedule.' Another unnamed GOP Senator revealed that Trump's mood has soured on some Cabinet members, and that he's readying for more firings.  'He's in a bad mood, so he's letting a lot of them go,' the Senator said. 'He's preparing to really let a lot of them go.' The comments below have not been moderated. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.