The number of Americans who are satisfied with how democracy is working in the U.S. has ticked up from record-low numbers recorded just a year ago, according to a new Gallup survey released on Wednesday.
Even though most Americans, 61 percent, are dissatisfied with the inner workings of the country’s democracy, the number of those who are satisfied has increased to 34 percent in December 2024, a 6-point jump from December 2023, the survey found.
Satisfaction is still low compared to previous periods, Gallup noted. The figures were much higher in the 1980s and 1990s, reaching a record 64 percent in 1984. The number dropped to 36 percent in 1992, but it was up to 50 percent just two years later.
The satisfaction with today’s state of democracy closely resembles the outlook immediately after the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol. Four years ago, only 35 percent were pleased, according to the survey. It has remained below that threshold since then.
The increase in satisfaction from a year prior is, in part, due to a higher number of Republicans being pleased. Around one in three, 33 percent, GOP voters are satisfied with the state of democracy, close to double the figure recorded, 17 percent, just over a year ago.
Satisfaction among Democrats changed little, standing at 35 percent, just 3 points below the 38 percent in December 2023, according to the poll. Independents are more satisfied than 12 months ago, now being at 34 percent, 7 points more than the 27 percent a year ago.
“As a result of the changes by party group, Republicans, Democrats and independents now express similar levels of satisfaction with U.S. democracy, a rarity in the trend,” Gallup’s senior editor Jeffrey M. Jones wrote.
The poll was conducted from Dec. 2-18, 2024 among 1,003 adults. The margin of error was 4 percentage points at the 95 percent confidence level.
