Polls Find Democrats Want a More Progressive Party

After 2024 election losses at the House, Senate, and presidential levels, Democrats have begun a period of soul-searching to determine how to move forward. One group vying for control of the party is the progressives, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Bernie Sanders, who are currently growing in favor with Democrats but might find difficulty gaining support from independents.

A poll from SurveyUSA addressed this question directly. The poll, which took place April 2-6 with 859 Republicans and 885 Democrats, found that among Democrats, 50% wanted the party to “become more progressive,” while only 24% said “stay the same” and 18% said “become more moderate.” Republicans were slightly more satisfied with the state of their party, with 40% saying it should be more conservative and 44% saying it should stay the same.

On the Democratic side, some of the new progressives have been using the first months of the Trump presidency to advocate for their views on the public stage. Rep. Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Sanders embarked on a “Fighting Oligarchy Tour,” speaking to tens of thousands in some Democratic strongholds like Los Angeles and Denver, as well as in Republican states like Idaho and Montana.

The rallying cry centers around the theme of Elon Musk and other billionaires working with and in the administration. “We're not going to allow you and your friend Mr. Musk and the other billionaires to wreak havoc on the working families of this country. No, you're not going to destroy Social Security. You're not going to destroy Medicaid. You're not going to destroy the Veterans Administration,” said Bernie Sanders at the Arizona State University rally.

The distaste among Democrats for Musk and DOGE has made Democrats skeptical of cutting spending overall. When asked in a Harvard-Harris poll, taken April 9-10 with 2,286 registered voters, whether Democrats should oppose the effort to reduce government expenditures or join in the mission of cutting government waste, 62% of Democrats said they should oppose the effort to reduce government expenditures. A majority, 61%, of independents agreed with the opposing view that Democrats should join the effort to reduce government expenditures.

The poll also asked whether respondents preferred Democrats like Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez “who are calling on Democrats to adopt a more aggressive stance towards Trump and his administration and ‘fight harder,’ or moderate Democrats who are willing to compromise on Trump issues important to their base.” In response, 72% of Democrats said they preferred Democrats like AOC and Bernie.

Republicans predictably supported moderate Democrats who would compromise with Republicans. Among independents, 56% said they would support the moderate, compromise-oriented Democrats over hardliners.

The preference can be seen in the difference in the favorability of the figures as well. In recent Economist/YouGov polling, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer – a legacy Democratic figure – pulled only 42% favorability among Democrats, while those like Ocasio-Cortez in the progressive camp garnered 66% favorability. Bernie Sanders was even more well-liked, with 80% of Democrats and 42% of independents having a favorable opinion, while only 11% of Democrats and 32% of independents held a negative opinion.