Democratic voters now appear to be abandoning capitalism for socialism. A new poll by Gallup, who starting polling 10 years ago, shows that “Democrats have a more positive image of socialism than they do of capitalism.”
Attitudes toward socialism among Democrats have not changed materially since 2010, with 57% today having a positive view. The major change among Democrats has been a less upbeat attitude toward capitalism, dropping to 47% positive this year — lower than in any of the three previous measures. Republicans remain much more positive about capitalism than about socialism, with little sustained change in their views of either since 2010.
Positive view of capitalism Positive view of socialism % % Democrats/Leaners 2018 47 57 2016 56 58 2012 55 53 2010 53 53 Republicans/Leaners 2018 71 16 2016 68 13 2012 72 23 2010 72 17 GALLUP These results are from Gallup interviewing conducted July 30-Aug. 5. Views of socialism among Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents are particularly important in the current political environment because many observers have claimed the Democratic Party is turning in more of a socialist direction.
Socialist Bernie Sanders competitively challenged Hillary Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2016, and more recently, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a candidate with similar policy views and a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, won the Democratic nomination in New York’s 14th Congressional District. Several candidates with socialist leanings lost their primary bids in Aug. 7 voting, however, raising doubts about the depth of Democrats’ embrace of socialism.
The current survey is the fourth time Gallup has measured Americans’ overall views of capitalism and socialism in this format. The question wording does not define “socialism” or “capitalism” but simply asks respondents whether their opinion of each is positive or negative.
Democrats’ and Republicans’ sharply contrasting views of the two economic systems are not unexpected, given the history of the two parties. Republicans and Republican-leaning independents have notably positive views of capitalism and negative views of socialism. Democrats, by contrast, are less unified in their views, but by 10 percentage points are more positive about socialism than about capitalism.
Fewer Than Half of Young Americans View Capitalism Positively
Americans aged 18 to 29 are as positive about socialism (51%) as they are about capitalism (45%). This represents a 12-point decline in young adults’ positive views of capitalism in just the past two years and a marked shift since 2010, when 68% viewed it positively. Meanwhile, young people’s views of socialism have fluctuated somewhat from year to year, but the 51% with a positive view today is the same as in 2010.
Older Americans have been consistently more positive about capitalism than socialism. For those 50 and older, twice as many currently have a positive view of capitalism as of socialism.
Positive view of capitalism Positive view of socialism % % 18-29 2018 45 51 2016 57 55 2012 56 49 2010 68 51 30-49 2018 58 41 2016 54 37 2012 65 42 2010 58 36 50-64 2018 60 30 2016 69 27 2012 64 36 2010 64 31 65+ 2018 60 28 2016 63 24 2012 57 26 2010 54 30 GALLUP Taken as a Whole, Americans More Positive About Capitalism
A majority of Americans have retained a positive view of capitalism over the past eight years, but this year’s 56% positive rating is by four points the lowest recorded since 2010. This modest drop in positive attitudes toward capitalism was driven, as reviewed above, by the less positive attitudes among Democrats.
Source: Gallup
