Democracy Research And Data From Pew Research Center

Leo Migdal

-Dec 3, 2025, 10:27 PM

democracy research and data from pew research center

Across 12 high-income countries, a median of 64% of adults say they are dissatisfied with the way their democracy is working, while a median of 35% are satisfied. 49% of U.S. adults say Trump is trying to exercise more presidential power than previous presidents and that this is bad for the country. Majorities in 20 of 25 countries surveyed say their political system needs major changes or complete reform, but many lack confidence this can happen effectively. Here’s a look back at 2024 through 14 of our most striking research findings. 90% of Harris voters, versus 57% of Trump voters, are confident the 2024 election will be administered well.

Stat: 60% - The share of U.S. adults who have at least some confidence in the future of the U.S. Story: A vibrant democracy requires a government responsive to the people it serves. And although polls show strong dissatisfaction with American democracy, Pew Research Center also found that 60% of Americans have at least some confidence in the future of the country. Seeking to build on that confidence, Pew experts in this episode discuss innovative, bipartisan policy approaches that help make government more responsive to the people, including investments in broadband access and early childhood education... This video is hosted by YouTube.

In order to view it, you must consent to the use of “Marketing Cookies” by updating your preferences in the Cookie Settings link below. View on YouTube Senior Vice President Government Performance We want to hear from you. Reach us with your thoughts at [email protected] or @pewtrusts on Twitter. You can also rate our show or post a brief review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and anywhere else you listen or subscribe to the podcast.

Public dissatisfaction with democracy continues to outweigh satisfaction across 12 high-income countries that Pew Research Center has surveyed consistently since 2017. Across that set of countries – Canada, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States – a median of 64% of adults say they... In the eight years we’ve been asking this question, people’s overall satisfaction with the functioning of democracy has dropped. In 2017, a median of 49% of adults across these countries were satisfied with how their democracy was working, while an identical 49% were not. Satisfaction returned to this level during the COVID-19 pandemic but has declined further in the years since. In this analysis, median scores are used to help readers see overall patterns in the data.

The median percentage is the middle number in a list of all percentages sorted from highest to lowest. This doesn’t necessarily mean people are turning away from democratic values. Our research has shown that people around the globe think representative democracy is a good system of government. At the same time, many are frustrated with political elites or feel their views are not truly represented in government. Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan fact tank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping the world. They conduct public opinion polling, demographic research, content analysis and other data-driven social science research.

Matthew Wilson, University of South Carolina Mariel Borowitz, Georgia Institute of Technology and Teasel Muir-Harmony, Georgetown University John C. Besley, Michigan State University Katharine Gelber, The University of Queensland Stat: 6 in 10: The share of Americans who are dissatisfied with the way democracy is working in the United States.

Story: Increased political polarization, shifting societal values, and growing distrust in institutions threatens the public’s confidence in our democratic system. And a recent Pew Research Center survey shows that almost 60% of Americans are dissatisfied with the way democracy is working in the United States. In this episode, we speak to experts from Pew Research Center about the importance of studying public opinion and Americans’ outlook on democracy today. We also speak to Michael Caudell-Feagan of The Pew Charitable Trusts about the ways government is working effectively for people, and about Pew’s historic role in furthering evidence-based policymaking. Executive Vice President of Research at the Pew Research Center Research Associate The Pew Research Center

Executive Vice President and Chief Program Officer As democratic nations have wrestled with economic, social and geopolitical upheaval in recent years, the future of liberal democracy has come into question. In countries across the globe, democratic norms and civil liberties have deteriorated, while populists have enjoyed surprising success at the ballot box. Newly democratic nations have struggled, while more-established, once self-assured democracies have stumbled, exposing long-simmering weaknesses in their social fabrics and institutional designs. These trends have been well-documented by organizations such as the Economist Intelligence Unit, Freedom House, International IDEA and the Varieties of Democracy project (V-Dem), which measure and track the quality of democracy around the... Public opinion researchers have also focused on these issues by examining how citizens think about democracy and its alternatives.

At Pew Research Center, we’ve applied a comparative, cross-national lens to explore global trends in attitudes toward political representation and individual rights. This exploration of how people view democracy is based on global public opinion data from surveys conducted by Pew Research Center between 2015 and 2021. Links to the original sources of data – including the methodologies of individual surveys and the specific questions asked – are included wherever possible. Our international surveys reveal four key insights into how citizens think about democratic governance: For many, democracy is not delivering; people like democracy, but their commitment to it is often not very strong; political... Related (February 2024): Representative Democracy Remains a Popular Ideal, but People Around the World Are Critical of How It’s Working WASHINGTON, D.C.

— Eight in 10 U.S. adults agree on a variety of issues that reflect core aspects of U.S. democracy. These include that using violence to achieve political goals is never OK; that elected leaders should compromise to get things done; and that having a mix of races, religions and cultures benefits the nation. Americans also express a desire to limit the political influence of wealthy individuals and businesses and believe there is a difference between facts and opinions. These findings are the first from the Kettering Foundation/Gallup Democracy for All Project and are based on a multimodal (web and mail) survey of over 20,000 U.S.

adults, conducted July 7 to Aug. 25. This is a five-year project designed to measure Americans’ views of how well democracy serves the U.S. and Americans from a variety of different backgrounds. The full report details how Americans largely agree that democracy is the best form of government but do not believe it is functioning well right now. As part of the survey, Americans were shown five pairs of contrasting perspectives on how democracy and U.S.

society should function and were asked to choose which perspective comes closer to their view. Large majorities of all key subgroups of Americans reject violence, favor compromise and embrace a multicultural society. There are modest differences in some of these views by party, age and education. For example, Democrats, independents and college graduates are somewhat more likely than Republicans and non-college graduates to see multiculturalism as a strength. Older Americans and Democrats are more likely than younger Americans and Republicans to endorse compromise. Age differences are even more pronounced when it comes to rejecting the use of political violence, with senior citizens most opposed and young adults the least.

This relationship will be explored in more depth in an article to be released next week. Another question in the survey, asked on a five-point agree/disagree scale, finds that eight in 10 Americans strongly agree (39%) or agree (41%) that everyone, regardless of their views, has the right to free,... Just 5% disagree, and 15% are neutral. This video is hosted by YouTube. In order to view it, you must consent to the use of “Marketing Cookies” by updating your preferences in the Cookie Settings link below. View on YouTube

A vibrant democracy depends upon an effective government that listens to and acts on the will of the people. But in these polarized times, many Americans lack confidence in the future of the country. According to a survey by Pew Research Center, only 19% of Americans say they are satisfied with the current state of the nation. Amid these challenges, is there opportunity to find common ground? In this season of “After the Fact,” we explore how The Pew Charitable Trusts is using data to make a difference and helping communities thrive. We also highlight the state of democracy and its underlying principles through interviews with experts and leaders of organizations working to rebuild trust and create a better future.

We want to hear from you. Reach us with your thoughts at [email protected] or @pewtrusts on Twitter. You can also rate our show or post a brief review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and anywhere else you listen or subscribe to the podcast. Receive notifications when new episodes publish and learn more about the guests and data featured on “After the Fact.”

Democracy Research And Data From Pew Research Center

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