Just 9% of Americans believe COVID-19 is a serious crisis, signaling Americans are ready to move past the pandemic, according to a new Axios/Ipsos poll released Tuesday.
The poll asked Republicans and Democrats to characterize the state of the coronavirus in the U.S. Only 16% of Democrats called it a “serious crisis” compared to just 3% of Republicans. Sixty-six percent of Republicans called it a “problem, but manageable,” compared to 81% of Democrats. Overall, 73% of those polled said it was a “problem, but manageable.”
Meanwhile, 31% of Republicans said it was “not a problem at all” while just three percent of Democrats said the same, according to the poll.
The poll was conducted amongst 1,043 adults between April 8-11 with a margin of error of +/- 3.4 percentage points.
Approximately half of those polled support mask requirements in school, a slight decrease from an earlier Axios/Ipsos poll that found seven in 10 supported school mask requirements.
SAN RAFAEL, CALIFORNIA – APRIL 06: Vials of Moderna COVID-19 vaccine sit on a table at a COVID-19 vaccination clinic on April 06, 2022 in San Rafael, California. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
Thirty-seven percent of those polled also said they’ve resumed their pre-COVID-19 activities, according to the poll. (RELATED: The FDA’s Own Experts Have No Idea Why It Approved Another COVID Booster Dose)
“People aren’t following the COVID case numbers on a daily basis,” Ipsos pollster and senior Vice President Chris Jackson said. “People see coverage and … assume the trend line is continuing even if it doesn’t.”
Restrictions and mandates are largely being lifted nationwide, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) relaxing mask guidance as well.
Other states that took a more eased approach to restrictions since the onset of the pandemic, however, fared better than states that implemented tough lockdowns, according to a new study by the Committee to Unleash Prosperity. When ranked in terms of handling mortality, economy and schooling during the pandemic, Democratic-led states like New Jersey, New York and California ranked the worst. Republican-led states like Utah, Vermont and Nebraska led the categories, according to the study.