Confidence in how well the 2024 elections were administered soared from their 2020 lows. A Pew Research analysis of voter confidence in elections over the past six years found that Republican voters’ massive swing in perceptions over election integrity fueled the change.
In November 2020, 59% of all voters believed the national elections that propelled Joe Biden to the Presidency over Donald Trump were administered either “well” or “somewhat well.” This included 94% of Democrats but only 21% of Republicans.
Even though their candidate lost the election, this year’s results found that a high percentage of Democrats (84%) still trusted how the elections were administered, a drop of 10% from 2020. However, Republican trust in election integrity soared to 93% with Donald Trump’s re-election, a jump of 72 percentage points.
Although Donald Trump warned leading up to the 2024 contest that it would be rigged, he has made no such claims in the weeks since he defeated Vice President Kamala Harris. In contrast, the years between his first term and his reelection were marked by false accusations of nefarious election activities in the 2020 race.
The Pew survey also measured the number of voters who voted primarily for their party’s nominee or against the nominee of the opposing party.
In both the 2020 and 2024 elections, the vast majority of Republicans (76% in 2020 and 82% in 2024) were voting for Trump, with only 24% voting against Biden in 2020 and 18% against Harris in 2024.
In contrast, Democratic voters were split in each election. During the 2020 contest, 46% of Democrats voted mostly for Biden, with 54% saying they were voting against Trump. In 2024, similar rates (49% for their candidate, 51% against the opposing candidate) were the case for Kamala Harris’ candidacy.
More results from the Pew analysis, including the survey’s methodology, can be found here.
Senior Editor at Good Faith Media.
