AEI Political Report: Coronavirus struggles, vaccine attitudes, comfort going out, 2020 election legitimacy, and Ordinary Life: Holiday cheer

BY KARLYN BOWMAN, JACQUELINE CLEMENCE, AND SAMANTHA GOLDSTEIN

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In this issue of the AEI Political Report, we look at Americans’ attitudes about the coronavirus pandemic and the promising vaccine news. We also look at how Americans’ willingness to return to their normal activities varies by partisanship and generation. Next, we compare Donald Trump’s overall and coronavirus ratings and look at trust levels in him, Joe Biden, and others. In our election legitimacy section, we compare the 2000 and 2016 elections with this year’s. Finally, we conclude the year with a look at how Americans celebrate the holidays.

Combating coronavirus

• Half of registered voters say the pandemic is going to get worse, while 17 percent say the worst is behind us (The Economist/YouGov).
• Fifty percent are extremely or very concerned about lockdowns in their state (Axios/Ipsos).
• Two-thirds say it should be mandatory to wear a mask in public (Yahoo! News/YouGov).

Vaccines

• With the latest vaccine announcements from Pfizer and Moderna, a majority of Americans are willing to get a free, Food and Drug Administration–approved vaccine to prevent coronavirus (Gallup).
• Americans are more likely to get a vaccine that has been on the market for a few months versus one that has just come out (Axios/Ipsos).

Return to normalcy?

• Americans are still uncomfortable doing normal activities such as going to a restaurant, the gym, a party, or on vacation (Morning Consult).
• Republicans are significantly more comfortable doing these activities than Democrats are, and millennials are more willing than baby boomers are to go out (Morning Consult).

COVID-19 concerns and ratings

• Seventy-two percent of Americans know someone who has tested positive for the coronavirus. About a quarter know someone who has died because of it (Axios/Ipsos).
• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is the most trusted institution to provide accurate COVID-19 information. Donald Trump is the least trusted (Axios/Ipsos).

Election legitimacy

• While a majority of registered voters says Biden legitimately won the election, 84 percent of Republicans say he did not (The Economist/YouGov).
• Voters do not think Trump’s attempts to contest the election results in court will overturn the outcome of the election. In a separate question, 60 percent say Trump should concede the election (The Economist/YouGov).

Ordinary Life: Happy holidays

• Although America is a melting pot of cultures and religions, 92 percent of Americans say they celebrate Christmas (AP-NORC).
• A third of Americans anticipate spending $1,000 or more on Christmas gifts this year (Gallup).

To view past issues of AEI’s Political Report, visit our archive here.