By a 5-percentage-point margin, more Americans say the Republican Party can effectively manage the federal government (30%) than say this about the Democratic Party (25%). A substantial share – 44% – say there is no difference between the two parties on this trait.
By comparison, the Democratic Party has an advantage over the Republican Party in several other areas. More Americans say the Democratic Party is better than the Republican Party when it comes to:
- Being willing to work with leaders from the other political party (30% vs. 19%)
- Trying to unite the country (30% vs. 20%)
- Governing in an honest and ethical way (29% vs. 22%)
- Having effective leaders in Congress (26% vs. 21%)
- Being more concerned with the needs of middle-class people (34% vs. 29%)
Americans are about equally divided over which party is better at selecting good candidates for office (25% say the Democratic Party, 23% say the Republican Party) or is more concerned with the needs of people like themselves (32% say the Democratic Party, 30% say the Republican Party).
However, on each of these characteristics, substantial shares of Americans – more than a third, and in several cases about half – say they see no difference between the two parties.
Partisans’ views of the Republican and Democratic parties
While partisans consistently say each of these positive characteristics better describes their own party than the opposing party, there are some differences in the size of the shares holding these views.
For example, 60% of Republicans say their own party is better able to effectively manage the federal government, compared with half of Democrats who say their party is better equipped to do this.
However, Democrats are more likely than Republicans to view their own party as governing honestly and ethically, having effective leaders, being concerned with the needs of middle-class people, trying to unite the country and being willing to work with leaders from the other side.
Favorability of Congress and the Republican and Democratic parties
About three-quarters of Americans (74%) have an unfavorable view of Congress, while 23% have a favorable view. Congress has been viewed unfavorably by the majority of the public for the last several years. And while these views are relatively unchanged since July, Congress’ favorability ratings are some of the most negative seen in nearly four decades of public opinion polling.
Majorities of the public also have unfavorable views of the Republican (64%) and Democratic (61%) parties. Negative views toward both parties are largely unchanged since July but have grown somewhat more negative in recent years: For example, in summer 2019, about four in ten Americans had a favorable view of the Republican Party and 47% had a favorable view of the Democratic Party.
