Most Democrats say their party’s elected officials are not pushing hard enough against Trump’s policies

With President Donald Trump in the White House and the GOP in control of Congress, 83% of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents say it is extremely or very important that Democratic elected officials push hard against Trump’s policies when they disagree.

How we did this

Pew Research Center conducted this analysis to understand how the public wants President Donald Trump and Democratic elected officials to work together.

For this analysis, we surveyed 3,589 U.S. adults from April 7 to April 13, 2025. Everyone who took part in this survey is a member of the Center’s American Trends Panel (ATP), a group of people recruited through national, random sampling of residential addresses who have agreed to take surveys regularly. This kind of recruitment gives nearly all U.S. adults a chance of selection. Interviews were conducted either online or by telephone with a live interviewer. The survey is weighted to be representative of the U.S. adult population by gender, race, ethnicity, partisan affiliation, education and other factors. Read more about the ATP’s methodology.

Here are the questions used for this analysis, along with responses, and the survey methodology.

A far smaller share (44%) say it’s important that party officials find areas of common ground where they can work with Trump, according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted April 7-13.

Democrats – who have grown more negative about their party overall in recent years – don’t think their leaders are doing enough in these areas:

• 74% say their elected officials are doing only a fair or poor job at pushing hard against Trump’s policies when they disagree.
• 78% say they are doing only a fair or poor job at finding common ground with Trump.

The survey also finds differences among Democrats in views of how their leaders should work with Trump.

Democrats’ views by ideology and education

Across all Democratic groups, larger shares say it is extremely or very important that Democratic elected officials push back against Trump when they disagree than say it’s extremely or very important to find common ground. But there are differences in these views by ideology and education.

• Very liberal Democrats (85%) are more likely than the party’s liberals (69%) or conservatives and moderates (45%) to say pushing back against Trump is extremely important.
• 17% of very liberal Democrats say it is extremely or very important for party officials to find common ground with Trump. This is less than half of the shares of liberals (41%) or conservatives and moderates (53%) who say this.
• Democrats with higher levels of formal education are more likely to say pushing hard against Trump is extremely important. Roughly three-quarters of Democrats with postgraduate degrees (76%) say it is extremely important for party officials to challenge Trump, the highest share of any educational group.
• There are more modest differences by education level in the shares saying it is important to find common ground with Trump.

At least two-thirds of Democrats across all ideological and educational groups say Democratic elected officials are doing a fair or poor job both of pushing back on Trump’s policies when they disagree, and of finding areas where they can work with him.

How do Republicans want Trump to work with Democratic elected officials?

Republicans and Republican-leaning independents are more likely to say it is important for Trump to push hard for his policies, regardless of whether Democratic officials agree, than to say it’s important for him to look for common ground where he can work with Democratic officials.

Republicans give Trump high ratings for pushing hard against Democrats. They’re less positive toward his efforts to find common ground.

Pushing hard for Trump’s policies, regardless of whether Democrats agree

Six-in-ten Republicans say it is extremely (28%) or very (32%) important for Trump to push hard for his policies, regardless of whether Democratic elected officials agree. And 81% of Republicans say Trump is doing an excellent (41%) or good (40%) job at this.

Finding common ground with Democrats

Republicans are less likely to say it is important for Trump to find common ground with Democrats: 43% say this is extremely (13%) or very (31%) important. They are divided on how well Trump is doing at this. While 48% say he is doing an excellent or good job, 34% say he’s doing an only fair job and 17% say he’s doing a poor job.

Where Americans stand on cooperation between Trump and Democratic elected officials

Overall, most Americans say it is at least somewhat important for Trump and Democratic officials to find common ground with each other. Similar shares say that Trump should find common ground with Democrats and that Democrats should find common ground with Trump.

But more Americans say it is extremely or very important for Democratic elected officials to push hard against Trump than say it is important for Trump to push hard for his policies.

• 36% think it is extremely (18%) or very (18%) important for Trump to push hard for his policies, even if Democrats do not agree.
• 52% say it is extremely (32%) or very (20%) important for elected Democrats to push hard against Trump.

This difference arises primarily because Republicans are more likely to say it is important for Democratic officials to push hard against Trump than Democrats are to say it’s important for Trump to push hard for his policies:

• 54% of Republicans say it is at least somewhat important for Democratic elected officials to push hard against Trump when they disagree.
• 34% of Democrats say it is at least somewhat important for Trump to push hard for his policies, regardless of whether Democrats agree. 

Note: Here are the questions used for this analysis, along with responses, and the survey methodology.