Key findings:
- More than half (57%) say events similar to those of Jan. 6th are likely to occur again in the next few years
- Almost two-thirds (63%) say Jan. 6th events have at least temporarily changed the way Americans think about their democratic government (Democrats are more likely than Republicans, 81% vs. 52%)
- 58% of people support the work of the House select committee (88% among Democrats, 32% among Republicans)
- Only a slim majority (55%) accepts Joe Biden as having legitimately won the 2020 election, down slightly from 58% a year ago
- U.S. adults are united on one thing: America is more divided today than ever before and 53% say these divisions have are worse than before and are likely to continue far into the future, roughly the same as in May and January of 2021
A year after the storming of the U.S. Capitol, more than half (57%) of Americans say similar events are likely to reoccur in the next few years, according to a new Axios|SurveyMonkey poll. Concern is especially high among Democrats, 70% of whom say something like January 6th is likely to happen again, compared with 47% of Republicans.
Almost two-thirds (63%) say the events last January 6 have changed the way Americans think about their democratic government, with a third (33%) saying those changes are temporary and nearly as many (31%) saying those changes are permanent.
- Democrats are more likely to say the events of January 6th have at least temporarily shifted the way Americans think about their democratic government (81%), compared with 59% of independents and 52% of Republicans.
- Older generations are more likely to feel the impact as 7 in 10 (69%) Baby Boomers and 71% of the Silent Generation say these changes have shifted the way Americans view their government compared to 58% of Gen-Z and 60% of Millennials.
Republicans show minimal support for the Jan. 6th Committee
Only 3 in 10 (32%) Republicans support the investigative work that’s been done by the House select committee on the January 6th events at the Capitol, in stark contrast with 88% of Democrats and 58% of adults overall who say the same.
- While just over half (56%) of adults say the House select committee should have the power to subpoena testimony and documents from witnesses, Republicans are split: 35% say they should, while another 35% are against it.
Half (51%) of adults say individuals should face criminal penalties if they refuse to comply with the January 6th subpoenas.
- Four in 10 (42%) Republicans don’t believe criminal penalties are necessary, compared to just 6% of Democrats who say the same.
- Yet older generations are less sympathetic: 65% of the Silent Generation and 60% of Boomers say individuals should face criminal penalties compared to 40% of Gen-Z and 44% of Millennials.
United by divisions
Only a slim majority (55%) accepts Joe Biden as having legitimately won the 2020 election, down slightly from 58% a year ago. Another 26% say they do not accept Biden as the legitimate winner (was 27% last year) and 16% are not sure (was 11% last year).
Despite widespread divisions, U.S. adults are united on one thing: America is more divided today than ever before. More than half (53%) say these divisions are worse than before and are likely to continue far into the future. These numbers are roughly unchanged from 52% in a May 2021 poll and 53% in a January of 2021 poll.
Divisions span beyond the nation and into politics as about half (52%) say the Democratic party is divided, up 16 percentage points from a May 2021 poll. However, divisions within the Republican party have started to subside as the number who say the party is divided has dropped 6 percentage points from 55% to 49%.
Read more about our polling methodology here.
Click through all the results in the interactive toplines below:
