Poll: Support for Political Violence Rises
Recent polls show a growing share of Americans saying political violence may be necessary to “right” the country — the Oct. 1, 2025 PBS/NPR/Marist poll found short‑term increases among Republicans (+3), Independents (+7) and a 16‑point jump among Democrats (to 28%), a trend experts tied to rising polarization and recent high‑profile incidents of political violence. At the same time, a CBS News/YouGov survey reports an overwhelming majority across parties say political violence is unacceptable, even as many expect it to increase and say they are less willing to engage in cross‑partisan political conversations.
Public Safety
Politics
📌 Key Facts
- PBS NewsHour reported results from a PBS News/NPR/Marist poll released Oct. 1, 2025 showing a growing number of Americans say violence might be necessary to get the country back on track.
- The PBS/Marist polling shows short-term party-by-party shifts: Republicans +3 points, Independents +7 points, and Democrats +16 points (Democrats rising to 28%).
- PBS's coverage included expert commentary—Lee Miringoff on polarization and Cynthia Miller‑Idriss calling the results a wake‑up call—and linked the findings to recent high‑profile political violence, including Charlie Kirk's assassination.
- A CBS News/YouGov poll of 2,489 U.S. adults (Sept. 30–Oct. 2, 2025; ±2.2% MOE) found an overwhelming majority across partisan groups say political violence is unacceptable.
- The CBS/YouGov survey also found most Americans expect political violence to increase in coming years, and that older Americans are especially likely to say violence is unacceptable.
- Both reports highlight deteriorating civic conversation: fewer than half of Americans feel comfortable publicly expressing political views; about half say they 'almost never' have political discussions with people who hold different views, and only 1 in 10 have such conversations frequently.
📚 Contextual Background
- The United States federal government entered a partial shutdown on 2025-10-01 after the midnight funding deadline passed with Democrats and Republicans failing to agree on a funding bill.
📰 Sources (3)
CBS News poll finds Americans say political violence unacceptable
New information:
- CBS News/YouGov poll of 2,489 U.S. adults (Sept. 30–Oct. 2, 2025) with ±2.2 MOE finds an overwhelming majority say political violence is unacceptable across partisan groups
- Poll finds most Americans expect political violence to increase in coming years and older Americans are especially likely to say violence is unacceptable
- Data points on civic conversation: fewer than half feel comfortable publicly expressing political views; half say they 'almost never' have political discussions with people who hold different views; only 1 in 10 have such conversations a lot
There’s a growing number of Americans who think violence might be necessary to get the country back on track
New information:
- Provides attributable reporting by PBS NewsHour of the PBS News/NPR/Marist poll released Oct. 1, 2025 (primary sourcing for the numbers).
- Gives party-by-party short-term change figures cited in the article: Republicans +3 points, Independents +7 points, Democrats +16 points (to 28%).
- Includes expert quotes contextualizing the finding (Lee Miringoff on polarization; Cynthia Miller‑Idriss calling the results a wake‑up call) and ties the result to recent high-profile political violence including Charlie Kirk's assassination.