A?subtle shift has been steadily occurring in our country. Judging from the panic of high-profile Republicans, and from that of my own Republican friends, it does appear the conservative right is *very* concerned about losing its foothold. But are we really becoming more liberal as a nation? Research suggests that we are.
An informal survey via?SodaHead?shows that 64% of the 55 people who completed the poll believe that we are moderate but that the right is slowly dying. The?comments in the thread?seem to be primarily made up of some serious hard-right denial.?OK, but this is just a little informal poll on a website, right? I mean, you can’t believe EVERYTHING on the internet. Is there any better data out there? Of course there is or I’d not be writing this article. Let’s tackle it and see what we can find.
From November 28 ? December 3, 2012,?Quinnipiac University?polled 1,949 registered voters nationwide with a margin of error of +/- 2.2 percentage points. Live interviews were conducted via land lines and cell phones. The results?give some startling evidence that we are on a steady path to becoming more liberal as a collective. From?the study:
1) Voters favor the legalization of marijuana 51 ? 44 percent with a substantial gender and age gap.
- Men support legalization 59 ? 36 percent
- Women are opposed 52 ? 44 percent
- 50 percent of white voters back legislation
- 57 percent of black voters back legalization
- Voters 18 to 29 years old support legalization 67 ? 29 percent
- Voters over age 65 are opposed 56 ? 35 percent
- Voters 30 to 44 years old support legalization 58 ? 39 percent
- Voters 45 to 64 years old are divided 48 ? 47 percent
2) The survey found that only 47 ? 41 percent of those polled believe that David Petraeus was right to resign as director of the Central Intelligence Agency after admitting to an extramarital affair.
3) On the controversy over the killing of the U.S. ambassador to Libya, 47 percent of voters believe the Obama administration shared the facts with the American people as they became available, while 41 percent think the administration deliberately misled the public.
4) ?On same-sex marriage, the biggest change over the past four years has been among men. In 2008, they opposed gay marriage 61 ? 31 percent. Now they oppose it 50 ? 43 percent, a 23-point shift over the past four years.
5) Women, who opposed same-sex marriage 51 ? 40 percent in 2008, now back it 52 ? 42 percent, a shift of 21 points.?White Protestants are opposed 63 ? 32 percent. [no surprise there]
6) Voters 18- to 29-years-old support same-sex marriage 63 ? 35 percent. [GOP, I’ve been telling you this, but if you keep ignoring me, I’ll be delighted.]
7) Hurricane Sandy: 53 ? 37 percent of voters believe that climate change did not cause the storm, but broken down, the numbers are more telling:
Breakdown of who believes the storm was caused by climate change:
- 14 percent of Republicans
- 37 percent of independent
- 55 percent of Democrats
- Men say no 57 ? 35 percent
- Women say no 49 ? 39 percent
8) Are people concerned about global warming, though? Yes, but the shift isn’t as big as that on the issues of same-sex marriage and immigration.
- 36% ?very concerned?
- 30% were ?somewhat concerned?
- 15% were ?not too concerned?
- 19% were ?not concerned?
9) By 70 ? 26 percent, voters support the Dream Act, which will allow young immigrants to stay in the U.S. without fear of deportation.
10) Immigration reform is largely favored by voters:
- 57% of voters believe undocumented immigrants should be allowed to stay and apply for citizenship
- 26 percent say they should be deported
- 11 percent say they should be allowed to stay with no path to citizenship
- [How many “I told you so’s” to the GOP am I allowed in this article?]
The only liberal issue that shows no left movement is abortion. A May 2012 Gallup poll indicates that?people are moving further to center on abortion; 50 percent of people are calling themselves pro-life (only 33 percent in 1995). People definitely support birth control ??89% of Americans?think that it is acceptable and needed [that’s right, Rick Santorum and Paul Ryan, so back away].
The general conclusion is that?those polled within the 18-29 age group had more liberal views on issues than did people in older age groups, with a systematic progression of more conservative views as age levels got higher. This should come ?as no surprise to anyone. It’s directly in line with countless studies (and just plain common sense) and mirrors what has been pointed out even by young Republicans. They’re just not on board with hard right policies. These are the future voters, folks, and I think we can count on our progressive agenda to continue moving forward.
People ?don’t want to hear the conservative bigotry, distrust, fear-mongering, and hate anymore; even common sense Republicans are increasingly embarrassed by the nut-job right-wing entertainers. Whatever people’s personal opinions are on the issues, most are coming to agreement on one thing: mind your own business; don’t hate; live and let live.
To view the raw data, you can visit the?Quinnipiac University Polling Institute website. A Word document is also available for download.
Watch this video of Tim Malloy, Assistant Director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute, discussing the poll.
Tiffany Willis is the founder and editor-in-chief of Liberal America. An unapologetic member of the Christian Left, she has spent most of her career actively working with ?the least of these? and disadvantaged and oppressed populations. She’s passionate about their struggles. To stay on top of topics she discusses,?like her?Facebook page,?follow her on Twitter, or?connect with her via LinkedIn. She also has?a?grossly neglected personal blog?and a?literary quotes blog that is a labor of love. Find her somewhere and join the discussion.
