A recent poll shows a majority of Americans think the country is more liberal now than it was 100, 50, and even 25 years ago. Almost half of those polled believe America will continue to become more liberal in the next 25 years, but a plurality want the country to become more conservative.
YouGov conducted an online survey of 1,000 individuals from Sept. 29-30 regarding the prospective political ideologies of notable historical figures and the ideological leaning of the country as a whole.
Asked, “Do you think America today is more liberal or more conservative than it was 100 years ago?” 62 percent responded the country is “more liberal,” while eight percent replied the country is “about the same” and eight percent responded the country is “more conservative.” Of the respondents, 22 percent were not sure.
Questioned about the country’s ideology now compared to 50 years ago, 61 percent responded the country is “more liberal,” while 11 percent stated the country is “about the same,” 11 percent replied it is “more conservative,” and 16 percent were not sure.
A majority also stated America is more liberal than it was just 25 years ago. In the poll, 57 percent claimed the country is “more liberal” now than it was 25 years ago, while 14 percent responded the country is “about the same” and 14 percent stated it is now “more conservative.” Out of those polled, 15 percent were not sure.
As for the future ideological path for the country, nearly half (43 percent) responded the country will be “more liberal” in 25 years. At the same time, 16 percent responded the country will stay “about the same,” and 14 percent claimed the country will be “more conservative.” More than a quarter (27 percent) were not sure about the ideological direction of the future.
Although a plurality stated the country will be more liberal in 25 years, a plurality, however, wants the country to be more conservative.
YouGov asked, “Do you want America to become more liberal or more conservative over the next 25 years?” In response, 36 percent responded they want the country to be “more conservative,” while 30 percent replied they want the country to be “more liberal,” and 13 percent replied the country should stay “about the same.” In the poll, 20 percent of respondents were not sure whether they wanted the country to become more liberal or conservative.