What Can Improve Democracy?
Amid growing discontent with the state of democracy globally, we asked over 30,000 people what changes would make their democracy work better.
Political Ideals & Systems
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Political Ideals & Systems
Publications
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Who likes authoritarianism, and how do they want to change their government?
The share of the public that supports authoritarian systems ranges from 85% in India to 8% in Sweden.
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Representative Democracy Remains a Popular Ideal, but People Around the World Are Critical of How It’s Working
A 24-country survey finds a median of 59% are dissatisfied with how their democracy is functioning, and 74% think elected officials don’t care what people like them think.
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Majorities in most countries surveyed say social media is good for democracy
Across 27 countries surveyed, people generally see social media as more of a good thing than a bad thing for democracy.
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Bipartisan Support for Early In-Person Voting, Voter ID, Election Day National Holiday
47% of Americans favor banning groups from collecting completed ballots to return to official voting centers, while 50% oppose this. The public is also divided over removing people from voter registration lists if they have not voted recently or confirmed their registration, with slightly more opposing this (55%) than supporting it (44%).
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Tuning Out: Americans on the Edge of Politics
Untethered from partisan politics and uninterested in keeping up with political news, here is how some Americans view the current state of U.S. politics.
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Americans’ Dismal Views of the Nation’s Politics
Americans’ views of politics and elected officials are unrelentingly negative, with little hope of improvement on the horizon. 65% of Americans say they always or often feel exhausted when thinking about politics. By contrast, just 10% say they always or often feel hopeful about politics.
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Chinese Communist Party promotes atheism, but many members still partake in religious customs
Despite the Chinese Communist Party’s ban on religion, some 6% of party members formally identify with a religion.
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Ahead of U.S. visit, about 6 in 10 Italians view Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni favorably
Nearly six-in-ten Italians (57%) have a favorable opinion of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, while 41% have a negative one.
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In U.S. and elsewhere, most say their country will be better off embracing changes over sticking to traditions
Across the nations surveyed, a median of 62% of adults – including 63% in the United States – say their country will be better off if it is open to changes.
