Gallup: United States shifted from Democratic preference to Republican in 2021

According to a new Gallup poll, political preferences among Americans have apparently shifted from Democratic to Republican over the course of 2021.

The survey results mirror the respective popularities of President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump.

For the first quarter of last year, 49 percent of Americans answered that they identified as a Democrat or a lean-Democratic independent. In the same quarter, only 40 percent said they were a Republican or a lean-Republican independent.

These findings marked the largest lead Democrats have had over the GOP since 2012, when the left was ahead of the right by 9 points, as noted by Gallup. Over the course of the year, though, the percentage of those identifying with the Democratic Party began to decrease as more aligned themselves with the right. 

In the second quarter, the percentage of Americans identifying as Democrats or lean-Democratic independents stayed consistent at 49 percent, while more Americans said they were Republicans or lean-Republican independents, rising from 40 percent to 43 percent.

By the third quarter, Democrats saw a decrease of 4 percentage points, dropping to 45 percent, and Republicans at the same time continued increasing their base, obtaining one more percentage point, bringing the value to 44 percent.

Once the fourth quarter came around, however, more Americans said they identified with the right than the left, 47 to 42 percent. 

The change in political affiliations reflect a similar pattern seen in the popularity of Trump and Biden throughout the course of 2021.

Trump began the year with low approval ratings following his consistent claims that he had won the 2020 election. Conversely, Biden started his presidency with a strong approval rating, but that popularity slowly decreased following a surge of delta- and omicron-driven variants, the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan, and sharply rising inflation.

ARTICLE: ELIZABETH HERTZBERG

MANAGING EDITOR: CARSON CHOATE

PHOTO CREDITS: USA TODAY

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