Aversive Partisanship and Perceptions of the Parties
A majority (53%) of Americans say the Democratic Party is trying to make capitalism work for average Americans, but 44% believe the party has been taken over by socialists. Eight in ten Democrats (83%) believe that their party is trying to make capitalism work, while eight in ten Republicans (82%) say the Democratic Party has been taken over by socialists. Independents are divided: Half (50%) say the Democratic Party is attempting to make capitalism work and 46% say the party is run by socialists.
Half (50%) of Americans say the Republican Party is trying to protect the American way of life against outside threats, and almost half (48%) say the party has been taken over by racists. A strong majority (94%) of Republicans say the party wants to protect American traditions, compared to 49% of independents and only 17% of Democrats. Democrats overwhelmingly view the Republican Party as being controlled by racists (80%), a view shared by 48% of independents and only five percent of Republicans.
