President Joe Biden’s victory in November elicited a sharp drop in election confidence among Republicans that, nearly five months later, has not yet recovered.
According to Morning Consult’s tracking of U.S. adults’ trust in a number of American institutions, faith in the country’s electoral system – largely bolstered by Republicans in advance of Nov. 3 – continues to rest on the backs of Democrats in the wake of former President Donald Trump’s loss, with self-identified independents almost evenly split and Republicans continuing to sour even as state GOP leaders advance restrictive measures meant to shore up their base’s confidence.
An average of four Morning Consult surveys conducted in March found 3 in 5 Republicans said they don’t have much or any trust in the electoral system, up 6 percentage points from an average of three November surveys conducted after the race was called for Biden on Nov. 7.
Over the same time period, the share of Democrats and independents who said they at least somewhat trust the elections system has grown 3 points, to 67 percent and 48 percent, respectively, though 52 percent of independents still express at least some doubt.
The movement among Republicans was even more drastic when compared to polling conducted since before the November election – part of a larger decline in sentiment among the group about nearly all of the 19 institutions tested in the surveys since Biden’s victory.