Democrats have become more optimistic about democracy in America, while Republicans have become less hopeful, according to an Economist / YouGov Poll of 3,166 registered voters.
An August YouGov survey found that 23% of Democrats said democracy is working very or somewhat well in the U.S., compared to 73% of Republicans. After the election, the share of Democrats who say democracy is working very or somewhat well has risen 21 points to 44%, while the share of Republicans who say that is down 22 points to 51%. The share of all registered voters who say democracy is working well has barely changed over that period, and the same is true of Independents.
Views about the future of American democracy have changed since before the election. 35% think it is very or somewhat likely that the U.S. will no longer be a democracy within the next 10 years. That’s within the range of 30% to 42% of registered voters who gave this response in 14 other YouGov polls since 2022, which asked about this as one of a list of possible future events. But Republicans and Democrats have switched places since before the election. 44% of Republicans now say it is very or somewhat likely, up from 20% in August 2026, while 26% of Democrats say so, down from 38%. Shortly after Trump won the 2024 presidential election, 64% of Democrats and 13% of Republicans said it was likely the U.S. would no longer be a democracy in 10 years.
Among registered voters who didn't vote in the 2026 elections, 31% wish they had voted and 56% don't mind that they didn't vote.
There's no difference between the share of Democrats and Independents who lean Democratic who wish they had voted, and the share of Republican leaners who say that (37% of each).
Democratic U.S. House candidates did well among Americans who say the Iran war was the wrong decision (76% voted for the Democratic candidate and 16% for the Republican), while Republicans did well among those who say it was the right decision (8% vs. 87%). But many more 2026 voters say the Iran war was the wrong decision (62%) than say it was the right decision (25%). As a result, around 47% of 2026 voters say the Iran war was the wrong decision and voted for Democratic candidates, far more than the 10% of voters who say the Iran war was the wrong decision and voted for Republicans. The 37 points contributed to the margin of Democratic candidates by voters who oppose the Iran war dwarfs Republicans' 20-point gain from their lead among war supporters.
That contrasts with the voting patterns of supporters and opponents of allowing transgender student athletes to play on sports teams that match their gender identity. Supporters of allowing this leaned overwhelmingly Democratic (89% vs. 5%), while opponents were more divided (33% vs. 59%). But there are far more opponents (65% of voters) than supporters (23%) of allowing this. As a result, 2026 voters who support this choice of transgender athletes contributed 19 points to Democrats' overall margin, roughly equal to the 17 points of margin gained by Republicans from opponents of transgender athletes' choice. Democrats had a big share of a smaller group, while Republicans had a smaller share of a bigger group.
Other issues where Democrats had advantages include grocery prices, where the Democrats picked up 22 points on their margin from their lead among those who say prices are going up a lot, compared to a 10-point gain for Republicans' margin from their lead among those who say prices are going down, not changing, or going up by a little. Democrats picked up 16 points on their overall margin from supporters of a ban on building new data centers, while Republicans gained 1 point from their advantage among opponents.
Image: Getty (Joshua Lott / Stringer)
What do you really think about President Trump, American politics in general, and everything else? Share your reality, join the YouGov panel, and get paid to share your thoughts. Sign up here.
