The Patriot Post® · Are Americans Moving Rightward?

A greater percentage of Americans now identify as both socially and economically conservative than at any time in more than a decade.

That’s according to a new Gallup poll, which reports that 38% of respondents say they’re conservative on social issues, and 44% say they’re conservative on economic issues. Both of these are the highest numbers the poll has seen since 2012.

The numbers are based on Gallup’s annual Values and Beliefs survey, which was conducted from May 1-24. “The survey,” Gallup says, “comes at a time when many states are considering policies regarding transgender matters, abortion, crime, drug use and the teaching of gender and sexuality in schools.”

According to Gallup:

The increase in conservative identification on social issues over the past two years is seen among nearly all political and demographic subgroups. Republicans show one of the largest increases, from 60% in 2021 to 74% today. Independents show a modest uptick of five percentage points, from 24% to 29%, while there has been no change among Democrats (10% in both 2021 and 2023).

In recent years, economic issues have steadily enjoyed stronger conservative identification than the social issues. As Gallup reports:

When Americans are asked to describe their views on economic issues, 44% identify as very conservative or conservative, 33% moderate and 21% very liberal or liberal. The percentage saying they are conservative averaged 40% between 2020 and 2022. The current figure is the highest since 46% in 2012. Americans have consistently been more likely to say they are conservative on economic issues rather than liberal, by no fewer than 16 percentage points (in 2021).

All this is good news, we’d say, but some serious caveats apply.

The first bit of brake-tapping we’ll do is to point out that Joe Biden is the least popular president in American history. For this reason, the numbers likely represent a greater dissatisfaction with his administration’s policies than with any sudden rediscovery of the virtues of conservatism.

The second cautionary note would be that neither 38% nor 44% represents a governing majority. That’s because the poll offers a third category, “moderate,” in addition to conservative and liberal, and plenty of folks are calling themselves moderate these days. This strikes us as a safe haven for self-conscious liberals who are too embarrassed to identify as liberal.

Consider, for example, that the 38% score for social conservatism is up from 33% last year, while the score for social liberalism has dipped from 34% to 29% during the same period. Meanwhile, a full 31% identify as moderates. That’s a lot of folks who, when push comes to shove, will still need plenty of convincing when the choice is between Republican and Democrat.

Again, the news is good, but it’s mostly because the alternative — the ruinous policies of Joe Biden — is proving so unpalatable. And the real question is whether this silver lining will translate to electoral success.

If Republicans can’t do a better job of harvesting the vote and winning elections both locally and nationally, then these encouraging polling numbers are ultimately just that — numbers.