A new poll has found that the majority of supporters of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump believe that America’s time of greatness is behind it.
The poll, which was conducted by YouGov on October 18 through 21 and surveyed 1,266 registered voters, asked respondents whether they believed America’s best days were in the past or yet to come, and found that the public is split.
For respondents who identified as Trump supporters, 52 percent reported that they believed America’s best days were in the past, while only 27 percent believed they are yet to come.
Only 2 percent of Trump supporters said that they believed we are currently living in America’s best days, and 20 percent said they are not sure.
Supporters of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump wave and take photos of the former president at a rally in North Carolina on October 21. A new YouGov poll found that the majority of Trump supporters believe America’s best days are in the past.
Evan Vucci/Associated Press
Supporters of Harris seem to have the opposite view — 49 percent said that they felt America’s best days were ahead of it, while 25 percent said the best days were in the past; 6 percent thought they were happening now, and 20 percent were unsure.
When split by gender, the poll found that men were more optimistic than women, with 42 percent thinking America’s best days were yet to come, compared to just 33 percent of women.
Individuals older than 45 were inclined to be less optimistic about the future than the younger generations — 42 percent of those aged 45 and older reported America’s best days were behind them, while 39 percent of those aged 18 to 44 reported that they are ahead.
Regionally, respondents located in the Northeast and Midwest also leaned in the direction that the country’s best days are in the past, while more of those in the South and West believed they are yet to come.
Overall, 39 percent of registered voters felt that America’s best days were in the past, while 37 percent felt they were yet to come, 4 percent thought they were happening now, and 19 percent were not sure.
It comes as the race to the White House grows nearer and concerns for the future regarding political violence rise on both ends of the political spectrum.
In the same YouGov survey, Trump-supporting respondents were split on accepting a potential narrow Trump loss — 36 percent said that they would accept it if he lost, and 38 percent said that they would not. A smaller, but not insignificant, proportion of Harris supporters — 14 percent — said they would not accept a narrow Harris loss.
This YouGov poll was conducted online, and respondents were selected from an opt-in panel allowing people to select if they would like to represent US registered voters in polls.
The margin of error for the poll was approximately 3 percent.
YouGov conducted a similar poll in the spring for the Washington Post and found that the majority of Republican respondents said that there was less crime and political division, and happier families, more close-knit communities, and more reliable news reporting in the past.
The poll also found that most Republican respondents felt there was better music, fashion, movies, TV, and more in the past than the present.
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