Nearly half of Americans think Democrats have moved too far to the left: poll

Nearly half of respondents in a new poll said the Democratic Party has moved “too far left.” 

The survey from Quinnipiac University Poll released Wednesday found that 47 percent of registered voters polled said the Democratic Party has moved “too far left;” however, most of those voters identified as Republicans.

The poll found that 79 percent of Republicans surveyed said the Democrats had moved too far left, but only 17 percent of Democrats agreed. Just under half, or 48 percent, of independents said the party has drifted too far left. {mosads}

There was also a gap by gender, with 57 percent of male respondents saying the party was too far to the left and only 37 percent of women saying the same. Similarly, the view was split by race, with 53 percent of white voters polled agreeing, 33 percent of Hispanic voters and just 17 percent of black voters. 

By contrast, 37 percent of respondents said the Republican Party had moved “too far right.” The poll found just 12 percent of Republicans agreed with the statement, but 58 percent of Democrats and 43 percent of independents agreed.

The look into how some Americans view the parties comes as more than a dozen Democrats seek the party nomination to take on President Trump in 2020. 

Progressive candidates Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) have built large grassroots followings while campaigning for some of the party’s most progressive policies.

Former Vice President Joe Biden, campaigning on a more moderate agenda, has also led the field with the progressive senators for much of the race to date.

The poll also found that the percentage of respondents who view the Democratic Party favorably has increased 3 points since August, from 38 percent to 41 percent. The amount who viewed it unfavorably remained steady at 47 percent. 

{mossecondads}The percentage of respondents with a favorable view of the Republican Party jumped 1 point, from 34 percent to 35 percent in the same time frame, according to the poll. It also found the unfavorable rating dropped 2 points, from 53 percent to 51 percent.

The time period between the two polls spans the House impeachment inquiry which was started over allegations that President Trump solicited foreign interference in the 2020 election. 

The same poll found that 48 percent of respondents said Trump should be impeached, split largely among party lines with 86 percent of Democrats backing his removal and just 6 percent of Republicans agreeing. 

The poll surveyed 1,578 registered voters from Oct. 17-21. There is a 3.1 percentage point margin of error.

The results are weighted to match the demographic makeup of the population by region, gender, age, education and race.