(The Center Square) – A new poll of voters finds two-thirds of Americans believe the country is headed in the wrong direction, with Democrats equally divided on the question.
The Center Square Voters’ Voice poll found 65% of voters said the country is headed in the wrong direction, 24% said the country is headed in the right direction and 11% were unsure.
When voters were asked the same question in late March, 62% said things were moving in the wrong direction, while 29% said things were moving in the right direction and 9% were unsure.
Broken down by party preference, the results are sharply delineated.
Among Republicans, 87% said the country is headed in the wrong direction, with just 8% saying the country heading is headed in the right direction and 5% unsure.
Among Democrats, 43% said America is heading in the right direction. An almost equal percentage – 42% – said the nation is headed in the wrong direction, with 16% of Democrats saying they are unsure.
Sixty-nine percent of voters who identify as independents said the country is headed in the wrong direction, 16% said America is headed in the right direction and 15% weren’t sure.
In the upcoming presidential election, Black and Hispanic voters could make the difference in whether President Joe Biden is re-elected, or former President Donald Trump earns a second, nonconsecutive term.
In the March poll, 59% of Hispanic voters said the country is going the wrong way. In last week’s poll, that number is up just slightly to 60%.
Among Black voters, 44% in last week’s poll said the country is going in the wrong direction. Back in March that number was only 35%.
“This is a big red flashing light that says ‘warning-warning,’” said David Byler of Noble Predictive Insights. “Democrats have a big problem here.”
Byler tells The Center Square, “Gone are the days when Barack Obama won Black voters 90 to 95%.
Byler cautioned that, in the 2020 election, actual results from Hispanic voters gave Trump slightly less of a bump than polls before the election indicated. Still he said, “Trump is doing a lot better with Black voters and a lot better with Hispanic voters than he was in 2020.”
In terms of income, 71% of likely voters making more than $100,000 a year said the country is going in the wrong direction. Of voters making less than $50,000, 63% said things are going the wrong way.
Gender seemed to make no difference in voter opinions, with 65% of women and 66% of men indicating the country is going in the wrong direction.
The poll was conducted in conjunction with Noble Predictive Insights from July 8-11 and surveyed nearly 2,300 likely voters, including 1,006 Republicans, 1,117 Democrats, and 172 true (non-leaning) independents. It has a margin of error of 2.1%. The Center Square Voters’ Voice Poll is one of only six national tracking polls in the United States.
