WASHINGTON, DC — Over the past 25 years, Americans have become significantly more likely to identify as liberal in their views on social issues. In most annual surveys since 2015, roughly equal numbers of people describe themselves as holding liberal views as moderates and conservatives. This reflects a shift from Gallup's earlier surveys, in which liberal views on social issues were a clear minority.
Meanwhile, when it comes to economic issues, Americans still tend to lean conservative, though the percentage leaning liberal is on the rise slightly.
Any trends toward more liberal views than in the past are driven by the US Democratic Party. Neither Republicans nor independents have become more liberal in their views over time. These trends in social and economic views are separate from a small long-term increase in Americans' tendency to describe their political views as generally liberal.
Looking at social issues equally from liberal, centrist and conservative perspectives
Americans currently hold roughly equal shares of conservative (32%), moderate (32%) and liberal (33%) views on social issues, according to Gallup's Values and Beliefs Poll, conducted May 1-23. While the numbers fluctuate from year to year, the ideological balance in the latest survey is also reflected in the five-year average from 2020 to 2024.
Early Gallup surveys of these questions found that Americans were more likely to identify as socially conservative than socially liberal: From 1999 to 2008, more than a third of Americans identified as conservative or moderate on social issues, while fewer than a quarter identified as liberal.
Although there has been some fluctuation over time, liberal perceptions of social issues have gradually increased, while conservative and centrist perceptions have gradually increased, respectively. Decreased Slightly.
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Conservative and moderate views still dominate on economic issues
Americans are currently Economical On economic issues, most respondents said they were conservative (39%) or centrist (35%), while about a quarter said they had liberal economic views (23%).
Similar to Gallup's trends on social issues, Americans are increasingly likely to describe their views as liberal, but this increase has not translated into ideological parity as it has on social issues. The peak in liberal economic perceptions was recorded in 2021, reaching 25%. It has been above 20% in each of the past five years.
As liberal thinking on economic issues has become somewhat more common in the United States, moderate and conservative views have each declined slightly compared to Gallup's earlier surveys conducted in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Conservative views on economic issues were especially prevalent during President Barack Obama's first term, as the country emerged from the Great Recession and he promoted stimulus measures and increased federal spending on health care. From 2009 to 2012, roughly half of Americans expressed conservative views on economic issues. In 2010, the Tea Party wave swept through that year's congressional elections, and the majority held conservative views at 51%.
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While a majority of people express conservative views on economic issues throughout Gallup's trends, about half of the indicators from 1999 to 2024 show a statistical equal number of conservative and moderate views.
The gap between conservative and liberal views on economic issues this year is 16 percentage points, matching the smallest gap recorded in 2021 trends.
The Democratic Party is driving the trend toward liberal thinking
The overall increase in liberal views on both social and economic issues is driven almost exclusively by the Democratic Party.
Comparing this year's numbers to indicators from 10 and 20 years ago, Democrats' liberal perceptions on social issues have increased by 30 points from 2004 to the present. Economical Across a range of issues, Democrats have nearly doubled in identifying as liberal.
Meanwhile, Republicans and independents are no more or less likely to identify as liberal on social and economic issues than they were in 2004 or 2014.
Independents' ideological views are roughly the same as they were in 2004 and 2014. They remain the most likely to describe their views on both issues as moderate.
Republicans have become more conservative on social issues, especially the economy. They are somewhat less moderate on social issues than before, and are half as likely to express moderate views on the economy as they were in 2004. As in 2004, very few Republicans identify as liberal on either issue.
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The trend toward growing support for the Democrats on social and economic issues mirrors trends seen in Americans' ideological support in general.
Conclusion
Comparing 2004 and 2014, Republicans have become more conservative on both social and economic issues, while Democrats have become more liberal, but not by equal amounts. The growth in liberal views among Democrats has outpaced the growth in conservative views that were already dominant among Republicans. While the ideological composition of politically independents has remained stable, the liberalization of Democrat views has changed the national average on both social and economic issues.
Despite an increasing number of Americans identifying as economically liberal, Americans are generally more conservative than liberal when it comes to economic issues. However, following landmark changes regarding LGBTQ+ rights, the legalization of marijuana in much of the country, and the recent Supreme Court overturning a ruling, Roe v. WadeHowever, on social issues the population is less conservative than it once was, with equal numbers of people identifying as liberals, centrists and conservatives.
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