Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
Research Analyst
Andy Cerda is a research analyst focusing on politics at Pew Research Center.
About three-quarters of Republicans (73%) expect the economy to be better a year into President Donald Trump’s second term, while 64% of Democrats say it’ll be worse.
About six-in-ten voters who belong to a union identify with or lean toward the Democratic Party, while about four-in-ten associate with the GOP.
Democrats hold consistently favorable views of all 16 agencies asked about, while Republicans express more unfavorable than favorable views for 11 agencies.
72% of U.S. adults say that there should be limits on the amount of money individuals and organizations can spend on political campaigns.
63% of Americans have an unfavorable opinion of Donald Trump, while 35% view him favorably. A year ago, Trump’s rating stood at 60% unfavorable.
Growing shares of Americans view both gun violence and violent crime as very big national problems. 49% of U.S. adults say gun ownership increases safety by allowing law-abiding citizens to protect themselves; an identical share says it reduces safety by giving too many people access to firearms and increasing misuse.
Democrats hold the edge on many issues, but more Americans agree with Republicans on the economy, crime and immigration. Inflation remains the top concern for Republicans and Republican-leaning independents, with 77% saying it is a very big problem. For Democrats and Democratic leaners, gun violence is the top concern, with about 81% saying it is a very big problem.
Half of U.S. adults say they disapprove of selective colleges and universities taking prospective students’ racial and ethnic backgrounds into account when making admissions decisions. 33% approve of colleges considering race and ethnicity to increase diversity at the schools, while 16% are not sure.
About three-quarters of U.S. adults rate spending time with family as one of the most important things to them.
In states where abortion is prohibited, the share of people who say access to abortion should be easier has increased since August 2019. A majority of residents in those states say it would be difficult to get an abortion in the area where they live today, up 21 points from four years ago.
