Declining American Pride Among Democrats
According to a recent Gallup survey, only 36% of Democrats express they are “very” proud to be Americans. This statistic highlights a significant decrease in national pride, a trend that’s even noticeable among the youth.
It’s striking how many Americans, it seems, haven’t felt much pride in their country over the past decade. The gap in pride between Democrats and Republicans now stands at 56 percentage points, the widest it has been since 2001, which includes the entirety of Donald Trump’s presidency.
Interestingly, only about 40% of Gen Z—those born from 1997 to 2012—report a high level of pride in being American. In contrast, around 60% of millennials, born between 1980 and 1996, feel that way, and at least 70% of older adults express similar sentiments.
Jeffrey Jones, a senior editor at Gallup, noted that each generation tends to be less patriotic than the last, and Gen Z stands out as particularly low in this regard. Even older generations are reporting diminished feelings of patriotism compared to their predecessors, with the trend primarily driven by Democrats.
The Gradual Decline of National Pride
This slow erosion of national pride has been evident in Gallup’s data, which has shown a consistent decline since the question was first asked in January 2001.
During tumultuous times, like the early Iraq War, a substantial majority across party lines claimed to be “very” proud of their American identity—about nine in ten at that time. This sentiment remained high after the September 11 attacks but began to decline afterward, dropping to about 80% by 2006 and continuing downward.
Currently, 58% of American adults express pride in their national identity, a downward trend mostly observed among Democrats and independents, while the majority of Republicans still claim pride in being Americans. Interestingly, pride among independents has hit a new low of 53% in the latest survey.
The drop in pride among Democrats seems closely tied to Trump’s presidency. When he took office in 2017, around two-thirds of Democrats were proud to be American; that number fell to 42% by 2020, just before Trump lost to Biden.
After Biden’s inauguration, there was a slight uptick in Democratic national pride, although it still doesn’t match pre-Trump levels. “It’s not solely about Trump,” Jones mentioned. “Something else is happening. Younger generations are just not as patriotic as older ones.”
The Divide in Patriotism
Further polling indicates that Democrats and independents are less likely than Republicans to emphasize the importance of expressing patriotism or feeling proud of national leadership.
Nearly 90% of Republicans believe patriotism positively impacts the country. In contrast, opinions among Democrats vary, with only 45% viewing patriotism in a positive light compared to 37% who see it negatively.
A broader sense of dissatisfaction is evident on both sides of the aisle. Earlier this year, a CNN/SSRS poll revealed less than 10% of members from both parties reported feeling “prideful” about American politics. Most expressed feelings of disappointment or frustration regarding the current political climate.
