America's Great Divide: Poll Shows Many Voters Would Consider 'Alternative' to Democracy, View Political Violence as Acceptable
A recent poll found that many Americans are open to an “alternative” to democracy, while others believe using political violence to achieve their goals is acceptable.
A poll released in late October by the University of Virginia Center for Politics surveyed more than 2,000 registered voters who are supporting either President Joe Biden, the incumbent Democrat, or the leading Republican contender, former President Donald Trump, in 2024.
The divide between both groups was strong.
Many voters from both groups felt the country was so divided that they would be open to an alternative to a democratic system.
The poll asked its responders to answer whether they agree or disagree with the statement, “Democracy is no longer a viable system, and America should explore alternative forms of government to ensure stability and progress.”
Thirty-one percent of those who said they intend to support Trump next year agreed with the statement about an alternative to democratic rule.
Meanwhile, 24 percent of those who said they are supporting Biden agreed that democracy is no longer “viable.”
As it pertained to political violence, the poll posed the following statement to respondents and asked them whether they agreed or disagreed: “People who support the [Republican/Democratic] party and its ideologies have become so extreme in what they want that it is acceptable to use violence to stop them from achieving their goals.”
Of the Biden supporters, 41 percent of them said they view Republicans as extreme to the point at which violence against them is justifiable.
Thirty-eight percent of respondents who support Trump answered the question the same way regarding Democrats.
The University of Virginia Center for Politics also found that strong majorities of both groups agreed that electing people from the other party would create sustained harm to the country.
The survey asked voters to answer yes or no to the statement, “I believe that electing officials from the [Republican/Democratic] party in 2024 would result in lasting harm to the United States.”
Seventy percent of respondents who support Biden believed that electing Republicans would create “lasting harm.”
Sixty percent of Trump supporters agreed with the statement that Democrats would create challenges that would be difficult to overcome.
Meanwhile, 42 percent of those who said they supported Biden told the pollster they view the Republican Party as a threat to the American way of life.
Forty-seven percent of Trump supporters said they felt the same way about the Democratic Party.
Regarding secession from the United States, Trump and Biden voters supported states leaving the union to form other countries by 41 and 30 percent, respectively.
Virginia Survey by The Western Journal
The University of Virginia Center for Politics polled 2,008 registered voters from Aug. 25 to Sept. 11. The survey reported a margin of error of plus or minus 2.2 percent.
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