Poll Finds 43% of Voters Call Republicans Elitist, Up From 36% in 2022
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Sep 18
Poll Finds 43% of Voters Call Republicans Elitist, Up From 36% in 2022
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Sep 18
Summary
43% of likely voters in the latest New York Times-Siena poll said “elitist” describes Republicans, versus 33% for Democrats, reversing a long-running stereotype.
The shift is notable from 2022, when voters were roughly split — 36% named Republicans and 35% Democrats — suggesting the GOP has lost ground on a key cultural perception.
45% of independents now see Republicans as the more elitist party, up from 36% in 2022, a change that could matter for the coalition that helped return Donald Trump to power.
Women picked Republicans by a 20-point margin, and every age group leaned that way; among 18-to-29-year-olds, the gap was 59% to 27%.
Interviews with independent voters, including some who backed Trump in 2024, pointed less to Trump’s personal opulence than to a broader feeling that Republicans no longer look out for everyone amid economic unease.