Poll Shows Americans Agree More Than They Disagree, Despite How Polarized We Are
It's almost like we've been pitted against each other on purpose…
Jacob Lund | Shutterstock This certainly isn't the first time America has been in political crisis, but for many of us, the country has never been more bitterly divided in our lifetimes. Research has shown for years that we're so politically polarized, we essentially all live in separate realities. That makes it pretty difficult to find any common ground.
It's fascinating, then, that a new poll has yielded results that fly in the face of this adversity. The poll centered on Americans' feelings about the so-called American Dream and its future, and it revealed that we are all much more on the same page than any of us realizes.
A new poll found that Americans agree more than we disagree, despite polarization.
The poll was conducted by non-profit activist organization All Above All to take the temperature of not just the state of the "American Dream," but why people feel about it the way they do. To do so, they polled 1,000 registered voters and oversampled men aged 18-34. At first blush, that might seem like it would skew the results, but it's in many ways a better barometer of American politics than any other.
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From the "male loneliness epidemic" to the rise of extremist voices in the online "manosphere," men and their disillusionment are the primary political engine of this moment, and the 18-34 demographic of men specifically was the linchpin in deciding the last election, delivering Donald Trump decisive margins in demographics like college students that have been unheard of for decades.
Given the weighting, All Above All's polling results are not just fascinating, they are frankly shocking, flying directly in the face of everything we know and have been told about this American political moment and young men's political orientations specifically.
Voters decisively agreed on the kind of society they want to build and the role government should play in it.
All Above All's polling followed trends that many experts have been calling out for decades: When political questions are asked of voters with all the hot-button buzzwords and incendiary political catchphrases removed, they largely agree on pretty much everything, even the most supposedly divisive issues.
For example, when All Above All's poll approached the hot-button topic of "climate change" by asking instead about issues like "pollution regulation," one of the most polarizing issues in the country came shockingly close to consensus: 79% said they want climate action, and 94% agreed that pollution regulation must be a priority.
This trend was replicated across myriad issues. When they were "depoliticized" in the questioning, this heavily male voting sample agreed by huge margins on the necessity of affordable childcare (82%), affordable healthcare (84%), protecting constitutional and civil rights (87%), and even, if you can believe it, reproductive freedom. A staggering 74% rated it as very or somewhat important to them.
Contrast that to what the country just voted for in November: An administration that has reversed environmental regulation, frozen or defunded vital childcare programs, issued executive orders banning "DEI" and other programs that protect civil rights, dismantled much of the healthcare system, and made undermining reproductive freedom a first-100-days priority. Why exactly did we vote for this again?
The similarities were all underpinned by one shared feeling: The American Dream is dying, and politicians don't care.
All Above All's poll gives the impression that the ultra-divisive issues, along with many others, are merely symptoms, not the actual disease, and their findings were decisive about what the actual ailment is: the "American Dream" is now largely out of reach to most.
The pessimism is palpable. Only 52% of respondents said they felt the American Dream was attainable for them, which is bracing given that respondents overwhelmingly said they equate the American Dream with essentials like personal freedom (62%), financial stability (60%), and health and well-being (55%).
Perhaps most interesting of all was the extent to which respondents said they feel politically powerless. Just 24% of Democrats said they feel they have a strong impact on the country's political direction, which is certainly not surprising given the results of the last election. But Republicans and Independents feel nearly just as powerless: only 32% and 26%, respectively, reported feeling like they have any sizable impact.
Which is where the rubber really meets the road: The TL;DR version of this poll is that not only do Americans, including the much vaunted ultra-conservative young men, largely agree on most issues when they're stripped of their political buzzwords, but they also agree that politicians of both parties are not serving their interests.
In a country that has become so tribal that most of us now reflexively hate each other the minute we learn the slightest detail about our political affiliations, that should give us all pause. And the fact that the divide seems to dissolve when issues are stripped of their "liberal," "Democrat," "conservative," or "Republican" markers should have us all asking questions.
Who exactly taught us to think of politics as a bitterly divided and dehumanizing team sport? Who exactly told us that things we actually agree on are "socialism" or "not pragmatic?" Who exactly taught us to blame each other for how disillusioned we all are, and who exactly is actually benefiting from us continuing these illusions? A hint ... It's the same people who have benefited from it for decades, and almost none of us are in their club, regardless of our party registration.
John Sundholm is a writer, editor, and video personality with 20 years of experience in media and entertainment. He covers culture, mental health, and human interest topics.
