Skip to content
Project 2025
Search

Latest Stories

Follow Us:
Top Stories
President Trump Claims To Care About Interference in US Elections While He Is Doing Everything To Eliminate the Protections

President Trump Claims To Care About Interference in US Elections While He Is Doing Everything To Eliminate the Protections

Woman voting on election day

Which Proportional Voting System Best Fits America’s Constraints?

Woman holding out an empty wallet at a table.

More Whites Live in Poverty than Either Blacks or Hispanics - Correcting the Perception of Poverty

The Tone of Our Country Has Changed — And Americans Can See and Feel It Everywhere

The Tone of Our Country Has Changed — And Americans Can See and Feel It Everywhere

Red rock formations in the "Valley of the Gods."

When Public Lands Become Real Estate

Increasing shares of partisans see members of the other party as ‘closed-minded’ and ‘immoral’

The partisan divide is getting worse

Increasing shares of partisans see members of the other party as ‘closed-minded’ and ‘immoral’
The Fulcrum
By The FulcrumOct 11, 2019
The Fulcrum
The Fulcrum staff.
See More Writings by author
Increasing shares of partisans see members of the other party as ‘closed-minded’ and ‘immoral’

How bad is the partisan division in this country?

Roughly half or more Republicans and Democrats believe members of the other party are more "closed-minded" and "unpatriotic" than other Americans, according to a new survey by Pew Research Center. Nearly two-thirds of Republicans see others as unpatriotic, while only 23 percent of Democrats feel that way.

The survey, which was conducted in early September and before Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced plans to pursue an impeachment inquiry against President Trump, revealed a growing animosity that has festered since Pew last conducted a similar survey three years ago.

Compared to the 2016 survey, the share of partisan Americans who believe the other side is closed-minded or immoral has spiked, with double-digit increases in the percentage of Republicans who believed Democrats were "more closed-minded" and Democrats who said Republicans were "more immoral" than other Americans.

Politics and name-calling aside, the majority of Republicans and Democrats also said the two sides didn't share many of their "values and goals" and roughly three-fourths of those surveyed said they not only disagreed on "plans and policies" but also couldn't agree on "basic facts."


Republicans and Democrats agree that they cannot agree on 'basic facts'


The negative vibes are clearly being internalized: Nearly 80 percent of those surveyed said the division between Republicans and Democrats is getting worse. Yet, only 46 percent said they were "very" concerned about it, with another 36 percent saying they were "somewhat" concerned.


Increasing shares of partisans see members of the other party as ‘closed-minded’ and ‘immoral’

Latest news

Travis Scott, Benny Safdie, Elliot Page, Corey Hawkins, Tom Holland, Emma Thomas, Christopher Nolan, Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway, Lupita Nyong'o, Charlize Theron, John Leguizamo, Zendaya, Samantha Morton, Himesh Patel, Jon Bernthal, and Logan Marshall-Green attend the premiere of "The Odyssey" presented by Universal Pictures on July 14, 2026 in New York City.
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

The Odyssey Isn’t Real, But American Diversity Is

Empty money in wallet.
Economy

The Concept of the “Working Poor” Should Be Unacceptable

The All-America City of Sacramento, California: Youth Forward and Sac Kids First

The All-America City of Sacramento, California: Youth Forward and Sac Kids First

Painting by John Trumbull made in 1818 depicting the Committee of Five (Adams, Livingston, Sherman, Jefferson, and Franklin) presenting their draft of the Declaration of Independence.
Democracy

Defending Democracy Through the Founders’ Principles

Read More

Kevin Kiley Left the Republican Party Over Gerrymandering. Now He's Testing Whether an Independent Can Beat the Map Drawn to Defeat Him.

U.S. Rep. Kevin Kiley (R-CA) on Capitol Hill on January 22, 2026 in Washington, DC.

(Photo by Al Drago/Getty Images)

Kevin Kiley Left the Republican Party Over Gerrymandering. Now He's Testing Whether an Independent Can Beat the Map Drawn to Defeat Him.

Independent voters now represent the largest share of the American electorate, and yet they remain almost entirely unrepresented in Congress. Both major parties have spent decades optimizing for their bases, leaving the near majority of Americans who identify as independent with the choice of either voting for a party candidate they don't fully support or staying home.

A handful of high-profile independent candidates are trying to change that in 2026. They are often covered as fringe candidates whose stories are told through the lens of how they'll impact the outcome between a Republican and a Democrat, rather than on their own terms. This series exists because independent voters deserve better than that.

Keep ReadingShow less
Veterans Day. US soldiers. US army. USA patch flag on the US military uniform and USA flag.

A record number of veterans, especially women veterans, are running for Congress in 2026, bringing military leadership and public service to the campaign trail.

KairosDee/Getty Images

In Lady Veterans We Trust

Many people who have served, or are still serving in the military, are not thrilled with the state of our country. There are plenty of active duty members who wish they could quit–and many of them are in my DMs asking for my advice–which might be why the number of military personnel inquiring about conscientious objection has risen by 1,000% since the start of the Iran war. Whether they joined to patriotically serve their country or simply for the promise of stability and upward mobility, a draft dodger who “finds the notion of military service difficult to understand, and the idea of volunteering to serve especially incomprehensible” is now holding them hostage in an indefinite war against Iran.

Veterans feel an obligation to speak up against the betrayal. 752 of them are running for Congress in 2026. A record number of them are women.

Keep ReadingShow less
In this photo illustration, Predictions market sites are shown on electronic devices on February 25, 2026 in Chicago, Illinois. Online prediction market platforms, such as Polymarket and Kalshi, allow people to place bets on wide-ranging subjects such as sports, finance, politics and currents events.

Prediction markets are expanding beyond finance into politics, war, and public policy. Explore the ethical, democratic, and legislative questions they raise.

Scott Olson/Getty Images

Betting on Crisis: Why Prediction Markets Are a Threat to Democratic Trust

Imagine opening an app on your phone and placing a bet on whether peace talks between two countries will fail, a conflict will escalate, or a terrorist attack will occur before the end of the year.

For a growing number of people, that is no longer a hypothetical scenario.

Keep ReadingShow less
AI Chatbots for Kids Should Act Like Tools, Not Friends

Close-up of AI chatbot on mobile

Getty Images

AI Chatbots for Kids Should Act Like Tools, Not Friends

During the rise of the Internet, as the World Wide Web moved from government and academic settings to family homes, parents worried about the exposure of their children to predators in online chatrooms. A generation later, as social media became central to young people’s lives, the dangers of platforms like Facebook and Instagram to children’s mental health moved to the forefront of the national conversation.

Now, as lawmakers and parents continue to grapple with how to keep children safe on social media, there’s a new danger already taking shape: AI-powered chatbots that simulate friendship, emotional intimacy, and care with children who may not be able to tell the difference.

Keep ReadingShow less
© Copyright 2026