Time apparently heals some wounds, as more U.S. adults now say the country is "united" — with fewer believing the United States is "divided" — than any other time since NBC's LX News and YouGov began tracking the sentiments in November 2020.
Nearly three quarters of U.S. adults (72%) still believe, in May 2023, the country is divided. But that figure is lower than the 81% mark measured last fall, and down more than 20 points from the 93% "divided" response from U.S. adults immediately after the Jan. 6 riots at the Capitol.
And more Americans (24%) now say the country is either "somewhat united" or "very united," a fourfold increase from January 2021, when only 6% of Americans felt the country was united.
Democrats (35%) were more likely to say the country was united today than Independents (20%) or Republicans (19%).
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But the sharpest difference in the latest polling was between adults under 45 years old (43% united), compared to those 45 and up (9% united).
Biden Getting Little Credit for Unity
Despite the improved sentiment toward American unity since the inauguration of President Joe Biden, who campaigned on unity and a "return to normalcy" in America, few U.S. adults say the president has had a positive impact on America’s deep divisions.
Only 25% of Americans believe Biden has helped unite America, while 44% believe he has further divided the country.
Through nearly two-and-a-half years in office, Biden has secured a series of landmark bipartisan compromises on gun laws, U.S. manufacturing, a child tax credit and infrastructure. But he’s also been criticized for speeches pointing the finger at "MAGA Republican" politicians and voters.
Forty-two percent of Americans – including a plurality of Independents and Republicans – say Biden should prioritize policies that unite the nation over the policies on which he campaigned. But Democrats remain statistically split between prioritizing policies that unite (38%) over policies that he campaigned on (42%).
Shifting Opinions on Trump Accusations
LX News has also tracked a shift in whether Republican voters believe Donald Trump committed crimes in office.
Only 64% of adults who identified as Republicans now believe Donald Trump committed no crimes in office, down from 88% when YouGov first asked the question immediately after the election in November 2020.
The steadfast support for Trump among Republican faithful has been steadily fading since then, with contributing factors that likely include the Jan. 6 riots, a public congressional investigation, a criminal indictment in New York and endless coverage of other investigations.
Twenty-two percent of Republicans now believe Trump committed crimes in office, a threefold increase from when the survey question was first asked in November 2020. However, fewer Democrats today (77%) say Trump committed crimes in office, compared to November 2020 (87%).
The newest LX News/YouGov poll surveyed 1,000 U.S. adults from May 17-19, 2023. The overall margin of error for the poll is 3.5%, adjusted for weighting.
Noah Pransky is NBC’s national political editor at LX News, covering Washington and statehouses across the country. His political and investigative work has been honored with national Murrow, Polk, duPont and Cronkite awards. You can contact him confidentially at noah.pransky@nbcuni.com, or on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.
