AEI Political Report: Public opinion on income inequality

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Do Americans think income inequality is a problem? The short answer is yes, and the May issue of AEI’s Political Report assesses, among other views, the politics of the issue and what, if anything, Americans think the government should do in response. This issue also examines public opinion on mandatory voting and touches on the latest general election polls from across the pond.

• The income gap as a priority: When CBS News asked in February about the most important problem facing the country, the highest percentage (18 percent) said the economy and jobs, whereas only 4 percent said the “income gap/disparity.” Income inequality ranked 10th of 15 issues (NBC/Wall Street Journal).

• Income gap perceived as growing: Sixty-nine percent of Americans polled said in January that the gap between rich and the poor is getting larger, 6 percent said it was getting smaller, and 23 percent said it has stayed the same (CBS News). Sixty-two percent of Republicans, 73 percent of Democrats, and 70 percent of independents said it’s getting larger.

• The politics: Forty-four percent of Americans think Democrats have better ideas about how to address the income gap, while 33 percent think Republicans do (ABC/Washington Post). Americans think the Obama administration’s policies favor the middle class and poor significantly more than those of Republicans in Congress. Still, 23 percent say his administration’s policies favor the rich.

• Government role in money and wealth distribution: Since 1984, around 6 in 10 Americans have said that money and wealth should be distributed more evenly among more people. But a Selzer & Company/Bloomberg question asked three times since 2013 shows that Americans are evenly divided as to whether the government should implement policies designed to shrink the gap or if it should stand aside and let the market operate freely, even if the gap widens.

• Mandatory voting: Pollsters have asked few questions about mandatory voting, but public opinion has remained consistently and strongly opposed to the idea. Sixty-six percent in a recent online poll said they either “strongly” or “somewhat” oppose making it mandatory for all eligible citizens to vote in national elections (YouGov).

• UK 2015: The most recent polls show the Conservative and Labour Parties neck-in-neck. Meanwhile, 53 percent of Brits are dissatisfied with the way David Cameron is doing his job as prime minister, and 52 percent are dissatisfied with Ed Miliband’s job as the Labour Party’s leader.

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