The vast majority of voters think that the nation is fundamentally divided over important issues, a new AP/NORC poll found.
85% of voters said that they believed the country is “greatly divided,” with just 34% saying that they expected the country to become less divided over the next 5 years. 65% of voters said that the reelection of President Donald Trump would lead to more division in the United States, while 17% said that the president’s reelection would make the country more united.
35% believed the election of Democratic Presidential nominee Joe Biden would make the country more divided, and 47% said Biden’s election would make the country more united, the poll found. (RELATED: Support For Barrett’s Supreme Court Confirmation Continues To Rise, Poll Says)
A new AP-NORC poll finds the overwhelming majority of voters believe the nation is deeply divided over its most important values. Supporters of President Donald Trump and Joe Biden alike think the opposing candidate will make things worse. https://t.co/JrGadyFpFq
— The Associated Press (@AP) October 16, 2020
Voters are also pessimistic about the success of democracy. 15% of respondents said that democracy is working extremely well or very well, and nearly half said that it is not working very well or not working at all, according to the poll. Trump supporters are more likely than Biden supporters to have faith in democracy; 70% of Trump supporters said that democracy is working somewhat well, very well, or extremely well. Meanwhile, 62% of Biden supporters said democracy is not working very well or not working at all.
Voters believe that Biden will do a better job handling race relations, the coronavirus outbreak and Supreme Court nominations. When asked which candidate will do a better job handling the economy, voters were closely divided, with 43% saying Biden will do a better job and 42% saying Trump will do a better job. Recent polls have shown that the economy and coronavirus will be two of the most important issues in battleground states.
Trump supporters showed much less confidence in the accuracy of the 2020 election than Biden supporters. 53% of voters who support the former vice president said that they have a great deal or quite a bit of confidence that the vote count in November will be accurate, while only 28% of Trump supporters said the same. President Trump has repeatedly questioned the accuracy of the vote count in November and claimed that mail-in voting will lead to higher levels of voter fraud.
The majority of Biden’s supporters were worried about eligible voters not being allowed to vote, while Trump supporters were more concerned about people voting who are not eligible.
A majority of voters also expressed interest in the campaign, the poll found. 84% said that they had read or watched the news about the election, and 79% said that they had watched a debate.
The poll surveyed 1,121 adults between October 8 – 12 with a margin of error of +/- 4 percentage points.