Americans believe one political party is better that the other when it comes to preserving U.S. prosperity, according to a new Gallup poll.
Americans' views on the Republican Party and the Democratic Party have shifted since President Donald Trump began his second term in office, according to the poll released on Tuesday. The poll found that neither party has strong favorability ratings or trust among Americans.
The poll asked respondents which party is better for keeping the country "prosperous." It found that more Americans now believe Democrats are better for the prosperity of the U.S. -- a significant shift from last year, when more Americans favored Republicans on the issue.
According to the poll, 47% of Americans think Democrats are better at keeping the country prosperous, up from 44% last year. Meanwhile, 43% of Americans think Republicans are better on the issue, down from 50% last year.
Gallup noted that these results mark a shift from Americans' perceptions on political parties during former President Joe Biden's term.
"In contrast to their current four-percentage-point deficit on maintaining prosperity, Republicans had no less than a six-point advantage during Biden's term, stretching to 14 points in 2023, when Americans favored Republicans over Democrats by 53% to 39%. The last time Republicans had that sizable an advantage on this key measure was in 1991, during a pro-Republican rally in public attitudes after the Gulf War," the Gallup analysis stated.
The poll also found that Democrats pulled ahead on another critical question. When asked which political party can do a better job of handling the problem they think is most important, 40% of respondents chose Democrats while 38% chose Republicans.
"The Democrats' two-point numerical lead on this today contrasts with three- to 11-point Republican leads during Biden's presidency. This measure has proven to be a key indicator in presidential election years, with the party preferred for the top problem winning in most elections going back to 1952," the Gallup analysis stated.
The poll was not all bad news for Republicans.
Republicans had a 7-point advantage when it came to which party Americans think is better to protect the U.S. from terrorism and military threats. Forty-eight percent said the Republican Party was better on the issue, compared to just 41% who said Democrats were better.
The poll also found that neither party had strong favorability ratings. Forty percent of respondents had a favorable rating of Republicans, while 37% had a favorable view of Democrats.
The poll was conducted among 1,000 adults from Sept. 2-16. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points at the 95% confidence level.