“You like me! You really like me!”

So said Sally Field* at the 1985 Oscars as she won her second Academy Award, for the (wildly overrated and largely forgotten) movie “Places In The Heart.”

If the Democratic Party were to take the stage of American politics today and make that claim, the cry from the audience would be, “We don’t! We really don’t!”

This may seem counterintuitive, particularly here in New Hampshire, where Democrats are on a glidepath to handily win all three federal elections in 2026. And while there hasn’t been much state-level polling in the past 100 days, the available data show that, just like the day he came down the golden escalator in 2015, Donald Trump isn’t popular in the Granite State.

But people who pay attention to politics know the story is much more complicated than that. And by “complicated,” they mean “Democrats are screwed.”

Is it true that Americans are unhappy with Trump? Absolutely. As polling guru Harry Enten told CNN on Thursday, Trump’s approval is down to 40 percent. But unlike most of the “first 100 days” coverage, Enten tells the rest of the story.

Democrat approval is down to 32 percent.

Is the tariff fiasco hurting Trump? Do Americans dislike the chaos he’s embraced since returning to office? Definitely. But when Enten asked voters, “Who would be doing a better job as president right now, Trump or Kamala Harris?” Trump still beats Harris, 45 to 43 percent.

“We have just seen this in poll after poll after poll, despite the fact that Trump’s favorable ratings aren’t too hot to try when he’s matched up against who he was matched up in 2024 he still — across the polls — scores a higher percentage than Kamala Harris does,” Enten said Thursday.

Harris’ standing among voters is so bad that, even without doing anything, they still think she’d be worse than the Trump train wreck they see every day.

And, he noted, when asked which party would better handle immigration and the economy, Republicans have a nine-point advantage on the latter and a whopping 19-point edge on the former.

“If Democrats think that just because Donald Trump is unpopular, they’re going to run away with (the 2026 election) like a Heisman Trophy winner, that is not necessarily the case,” Enten added. “These numbers should be a major wake-up call for Democrats.”

But not in New Hampshire, right? Democrats are dominating here, right?

Consider the state of the race for New Hampshire governor.

“What race?” you ask.

Exactly.

Gov. Kelly Ayotte is a first-term governor, she’s facing a tough budget cycle, and she’s not named Sununu. And yet there isn’t a single, serious Democrat to challenge her on the horizon. The names that are being bandied about are borderline embarrassing.

Former state Sen. Tom Sherman of Rye, who lost to Sununu by 15 points.

State Sen. Debra Altschiller (D-Stratham), the outspoken Seacoast progressive, is also rumored to be considering a run — a rumor Republicans put in the “too good to be true” category.

Assuming Arnie Arnesen isn’t up for another run, Altschiller is the GOP’s top choice for a November opponent.

And if that sounds bad, consider the race for Manchester mayor.

Democrats have a year until the 2026 filing period for governor, but the race for mayor is this November. And the total number of Democratic candidates — real or imagined — is zero. Manchester is a city that Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden, and Kamala Harris all carried. It had a Democratic mayor until 2023.

But as of today, Republican Mayor Jay Ruais has no Democratic opponent. None.

One possible Democratic challenger, longtime Manchester state Sen. Donna Soucy, has been sidelined because she’s now a former state senator. She lost to unapologetic conservative Republican Victoria Sullivan.

Not in Salem. Not in Weare. But in Manchester.

Why?

Once again, there is little data to review. But a few facts are apparent and beyond dispute.

One is that, with Republicans in control, life in New Hampshire is pretty good. The economy is strong, taxes are low, the state has turned the corner on the opioid crisis, and the Granite State is that rare corner of the Northeast where more U-Haul trucks arrive every year than leave.

Another data point is that New Hampshire Democrats are sticking with the same messaging that got them where they are today. Last year they ran on a platform of keeping the interest and deductions income tax. This year, they are fighting to bring the tax back.

Last year, they supported sanctuary cities and opposed bans on boys in girls’ sports. This year, more of the same.

It’s the political equivalent of winning the “Razzie” (Hollywood’s award for the worst performances) and shouting, “Let’s do a sequel!”

And then there are those terrible poll numbers Enten laid out. It’s true that the national Republican brand is battered here in New Hampshire, but the Democratic brand isn’t in great shape, either. As Enten said, counting on Trump hatred to carry the day is a shaky bet at best.

Also on Thursday, veteran political reporter Mark Halperin’s 2Way platform released the “People’s Poll,” with similar results. The poll, a nationwide online survey conducted among 1,000 registered voters by David Burrell of Wick, finds Americans evenly split on the two parties (Dems -4, GOP -5), and on Trump’s favorability (44 percent favorable, 47 percent unfavorable).

But one of the few areas where there was a solid majority: 66 percent of Americans say congressional Democrats lost credibility by covering up for President Joe Biden’s mental decline. That includes more than 50 percent of Democrats.

New Hampshire Democrats played a key role in the cover up. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen pushed the bogus “write in” primary that let Biden avoid campaigning in the Granite State until he’d locked down the nomination. Sen. Maggie Hassan offered her vote of confidence in Biden after his debate disaster.

Meanwhile, voters continue to trust President Trump on the economy, despite their misgivings today. As chaotic as the current economy is, two-thirds of Americans believe that a year from now, their personal finances will be better than they are today.

During that year, Donald Trump will be president. And during that year, Democrats will continue to call him a fascist, fantasize about impeachment, protest on behalf of illegal aliens and pro-Hamas student protesters — and then wonder why nobody likes them.

*(Her actual quote was “I can’t deny the fact that you like me. Right now, you like me!”)