‘Partisan Tribalism’ Dominates in Poll of Americans’ Virus Views

(Bloomberg) -- Democrats and Republicans see the coronavirus threat in starkly different terms, with Democrats more likely to have been personally affected by the pandemic and Republicans more confident of a return to normalcy.

The differences, revealed in a new poll from Monmouth University Monday, shed light on the political ramifications of the virus but also show how voters see the world in starkly different terms.

“Partisan tribalism is the most obvious explanation,” said Patrick Murray, director of the Monmouth poll. “That’s how strong the filters are, reinforced by exposure to information sources that stick to different narratives.”

Those narratives are reflected in the major-party candidates for president themselves: President Donald Trump has played down the death tolls and promised an economic rebound later this year. He has also urged states to reopen businesses and ease lockdowns even as many Americans remain wary.

His Democratic challenger, Joe Biden, has criticized Trump for moving too fast to reopen the economy and warned of more damage if the government doesn’t take steps to prepare for the next pandemic.

Democrats’ pessimism seems to be rooted in a different coronavirus experience. They’re more likely to know someone who has gotten the coronavirus -- 47% compared to 39% for independents and 37% for Republicans. And Democrats are more likely to be working from home, losing income, getting groceries delivered, and struggling to pay bills.

And they’re much more worried about getting the virus themselves: 60% of Democrats are “very concerned,” compared with 38% for independents and 25% for Republicans.

Those differences can be partly explained by geography. The virus has hit densely populated urban centers, which tend to be Democratic, especially hard. And with some exceptions, like Ohio and Maryland, Republican governors have generally been quicker to ease restrictions on economic activity.

But the poll also shows different degrees of optimism between the two parties, with 79% of Republicans confident the country will limit the effects of the outbreak within the next few weeks. Just 30% of Democrats are similarly confident.

Republicans are also much more optimistic about a post-coronavirus world: 80% of Republicans are very hopeful that their lives will return to normal, compared with 53% for Democrats.

The national poll was conducted by telephone April 30 to May 4 and has a margin of error of 3.5 percentage points.

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