Americans Becoming More Conservative - Gallup Poll

Americans say they are becoming more conservative according to the latest Gallup research.

Despite having a cadre of the most liberal politicians in both executive and legislative branches of the federal government, Gallup recently published an interesting finding - Americans are growing more conservative, by a 2 to 1 margin over liberal growth.

This trend follows previous national trends. When a president is conservative, Americans move toward liberalism. When a president is liberal, Americans move toward conservatism.

On major domestic issues the data show some interesting trends:


The chart is a bit difficult to read at this size, sorry about that. It shows Americans favor protecting the economy over protecting the environment, perhaps suggesting that the recent Cap and Trade bill that passed through the House was not a popular move, producing some backlash for House liberals. More Americans say health care is not government's responsibility, perhaps signaling a backlash to Obama's heavy-handed push for Obamacare. More Americans are conservative toward gun laws. Interestingly, Americans are growing more liberal in their views on immigration.
On social issues, Americans are growing more conservative. Pro-life support took a large jump - up seven percent since 2004. Same sex marriage support seems to be slipping as well, although support for homosexual lifestyle gained by the same margin. Americans, while accepting homosexuality still don't buy the gay activist mantras of marriage.

Overall, the trend seems to signal a resurgence in conservatism. How this will translate into government power remains to be seen. Does this portend the rise of Republicans? Perhaps, but only if they can successfully redefine themselves as representing conservatism. This also seems to indicate a growing dissatisfaction with the federal government in handling the major issues of the day.

Here's a Gallup video with their analysis of the conservative trend.