As the United States approaches its 250th anniversary next month, two in five Americans do not believe the country will survive for another 250 years, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found, highlighting deep divisions in how the nation sees itself.
The four-day survey, which concluded Monday, was conducted amid polarizing celebrations that President Donald Trump has tied to July 4, the day that will mark 250 years since the men who later became known as the U.S. Founding Fathers declared independence from Britain.
Trump has put himself at the center of many anniversary events, including hosting a cage fight at the White House on his birthday Sunday. On Monday, he said he would headline the July 4th celebration in Washington, which will also serve as a political rally for Republicans as his party seeks to retain control of Congress in the November midterm elections.
Trump has cast his presidency as an attempt to save America from the destruction he accuses Democrats of causing. Democratic leaders, however, argue that Trump is a threat to democracy and accuse him of using federal law enforcement to target political critics.
About 38 percent of respondents in the poll, including 40 percent of Democrats and 26 percent of Republicans, said they did not believe the United States would exist as a single country in 250 years. Only 62 percent thought their country would survive.
Trump has accused Democrats, and particularly the previous administration of Democratic President Joe Biden, of illegally persecuting his allies, including those involved in the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, which was an attempt to overturn his defeat in the 2020 presidential election. Republicans also point to multiple assassination attempts on Trump as evidence that his opponents are prone to political violence.
Two-thirds of respondents, including 85 percent of Democrats and 50 percent of Republicans, agreed that American democracy is in danger of collapsing. The overall share of those who believe democracy is under threat rose from 57 percent in the August poll, driven by greater Republican concern about the resilience of democracy.
Trump has claimed for years that his 2020 defeat was the result of massive electoral fraud and has advocated for changes to election laws.
About 77 percent of respondents said it was likely that political violence would increase in the next five years.
The poll also showed a decline in the proportion of Americans who see their country as unrivaled in the world. About 30 percent of respondents said they considered America the greatest country in the world, down from 38 percent in a Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted in November 2017, during Trump's first term. The share of Democrats who share that view fell from 26 percent to 11 percent, while it remained steady among Republicans, at about six in 10.
A majority of Americans, including three-quarters of Democrats and half of Republicans, said they think events marking the country's 250th anniversary have become too political.
Americans are also divided on more mundane issues, such as how to celebrate Independence Day. About 52 percent of Republicans said their celebration would include wearing red, white and blue, the colors of the American flag, compared with 20 percent of Democrats. Republicans were more likely than Democrats to say they planned to attend fireworks, 46 percent to 28 percent.
The poll, conducted online, included responses from 1.537 American adults nationwide, and the results have a margin of error of three percentage points in either direction.
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