Wide differences over cultural issues, role of government and foreign policy
This spring, Pew Research Center conducted a major study of American political values. This survey examined the public’s views of topics including immigration, race and ethnicity, government, family, gender identity, religious values, and foreign policy. Reports released earlier this year looked at these attitudes among supporters of President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump – then the likely major-party nominees for president.
Because the Pew Research Center interviews the same adults over time using the online American Trends Panel, for this analysis we are able to link respondents’ voter preferences across multiple surveys. As a result, we can analyze results from the spring survey by vote preferences collected in a more recent August survey – when we asked voters about their preference in the presidential contest between Donald Trump, Kamala Harris and Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
This analysis uses responses from 4,527 registered voters who took both surveys. The values survey was conducted April 8-14, 2024. The vote preference survey (support if the presidential election were held today) was conducted Aug. 5-11, 2024.
Everyone who took part in these surveys is a member of the Center’s American Trends Panel (ATP), a group of people recruited through national, random sampling of residential addresses who have agreed to take surveys regularly. This kind of recruitment gives nearly all U.S. adults a chance of selection. Surveys were conducted either online or by telephone with a live interviewer. The results are weighted to be representative of the U.S. adult population by gender, race, ethnicity, partisan affiliation, education and other factors. Read more about the ATP’s methodology.
Refer to the original reports (linked in the text of this report) for the full toplines. Here is the survey methodology for this analysis.
The 2024 presidential campaign has changed dramatically since Kamala Harris replaced Joe Biden as the Democratic Party’s nominee.
What has not changed is the vast differences in political values between voters who support Harris and those who back Republican nominee Donald Trump.
Following Harris’s extraordinary ascension to the top of the Democratic ticket, this publication and the accompanying detailed tables serve to update Pew Research Center data on political values that we released earlier this year, when Biden was still in the race.
Cultural values and the 2024 election
Some of the widest gaps between Harris and Trump supporters are on issues that have divided Americans for decades, such as the role of guns in society, race and the legacy of slavery.
In addition, voters who back Harris and Trump have sharply different views on immigration, gender identity, and whether society should prioritize marriage and having children.
Here’s the original report on cultural issues, released June 6, 2024.
And here is updated data on Harris and Trump supporters’ views about: Race and racial diversity | Immigration and language | American history | Gender, family, reproductive issues | Gender identity and sexual orientation | Religion | Crime and policing | Guns
Views of government and the 2024 election
For decades, Republicans have mostly expressed a preference for smaller government, while most Democrats favor a larger government that provides more services.
This remains the case today, with Trump supporters over three times more likely than Harris supporters to favor smaller government.
Other attitudes about government – including its role in providing health care coverage – show similar patterns.
However, large majorities of both candidates’ supporters oppose any reductions in Social Security benefits.
Here’s the original report on views of government, released June 24, 2024.
And here is updated data on Harris and Trump supporters’ views about: Government’s scope and role
Foreign policy values and the 2024 election
Supporters of Harris and Trump also have fundamental differences on America’s place in the world.
Harris supporters are more likely than Trump supporters to say the United States should take into account the interests of its allies, and that is at least very important for the U.S. to have an active role in world affairs.
Trump supporters are more likely to support policies aimed at maintaining America’s role as the world’s lone military superpower.
Here’s the original report on foreign policy, released Aug. 2, 2024.
And here is updated data on Harris and Trump supporters views about: Foreign policy, U.S. military strength
Related: War in Ukraine: Wide Partisan Differences on U.S. Responsibility and Support
