Election System & Voting Process

Americans’ views of politics and elected officials are unrelentingly negative, with little hope of improvement on the horizon. 65% of Americans say they always or often feel exhausted when thinking about politics. By contrast, just 10% say they always or often feel hopeful about politics.

68% of U.S. adults who voted in the 2020 presidential election turned out to vote in the 2022 midterms. Former President Donald Trump’s voters turned out at a higher rate in 2022 (71%) than did President Joe Biden’s voters (67%).

Most U.S. adults say President Joe Biden (65%) and Republican leaders in Congress (61%) will be unsuccessful getting their agendas enacted in the next two years; only about a third say the president and GOP leaders will be successful. Republicans are less confident than Democrats in midterm vote counts – but more confident than they were after the 2020 election.

There has been a sharp decline in the share of Republican voters who are “very confident” that votes cast at polling places will be counted accurately.

63% of Americans say the way the president is elected should be changed so that the winner of the popular vote nationwide wins the presidency.

Only a small share of Americans have heard a lot about redistricting in their state and a majority are not sure how they feel.  

Americans remain deeply divided about the events of Jan. 6, 2021, and the ongoing congressional investigation into what happened.

The complexity of the overall system, varying rules on how and when you can vote, and whether the candidate you support wins or loses all impact trust in the election process.

57% of Americans view voting as “a fundamental right for every adult U.S. citizen and should not be restricted in any way.”

We identified 261 U.S. jurisdictions that have adopted some voting method other than the winner-take-all system most American voters know.