Most Democrats, Republicans say US ‘democracy’ won’t last, poll finds
More than half of self-identified Democrats and Republicans believe the US will no longer be a “democracy” at some point in the future, according to a new poll.
The striking findings were reported in a Yahoo News/YouGov survey which found 55% of Democrats and 53% of Republicans said it was “likely” the US will “cease to be a democracy in the future.”
It was unclear how the poll defined “democracy.” The US is officially a constitutional federal republic where states run direct elections for most high offices — though not, most notably, for president.
When independents and the non-affiliated were factored in, the depressing notion was shared by 49% of all respondents — while only 25% said they consider the end of democracy to be “unlikely,” while another 25% said they were unsure.
In addition, 60% of Democrats and 61% of Republicans believe America is becoming a “less democratic country.”
Both political sides also believe they were treated more fairly “in the past” than now – 71% of Republicans and 50% of Democrats agreed with that statement.
Additionally, the poll found that 52% of Republicans, 50% of independents and 46% of Democrats believe “there will be a civil war in the United States in [their] lifetime.”
While there appears to be bipartisan hopelessness for the future of America, respondents were quick to blame the other side for the present predicament.
A plurality of Republicans — 30% — described Democrats as “out of touch with reality,” while 25% claimed they were a “threat to America.” Another 8% see the Democratic Party as “immoral” and 4% said it was a “threat to me personally.”
Democrats’ opinions of the GOP were similar, with 27% calling the Republican Party “out of touch with reality,” 23% saying they are a “threat to America,” 7% claiming the GOP is “immoral” and 4% calling it a “threat to me personally.”
The Yahoo News/YouGov survey also polled voters on the ongoing hearings held by the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol riot — and overall, Americans are not impressed.
Only 24% of respondents said they watched the initial primetime session broadcast last week, while 27% said they followed news coverage after the fact. A whopping 49% said they have not followed the hearings at all.
The committee is seeking to convince Americans that the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot was part of a conspiracy to overturn the 2020 presidential election results. However, only 45% of Americans believe that claim, according to the survey. Another 35% said they did not believe it while 20% said they were unsure.
Even fewer respondents — 37% — believe that “Donald Trump was at the center” of any plot to keep him in power.
The survey of 1,541 US adults was conducted June 10 to 13 and carries a margin of error of approximately 2.9%.
