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Democrats are far less likely than Republicans to prioritize patriotism as a core value the nation needs, marking the single widest partisan divide in a new survey examining the country’s values.
According to a Gallup and With Honor survey released Sunday, 46% of Republicans ranked patriotism among the top three values the nation needs most, compared with just 6% of Democrats – a 40-percentage-point difference that dwarfs every other ideological disagreement in the poll.
“Democrats are far more likely to say the country needs equality, fairness and kindness, while Republicans are far more likely to say the country needs responsibility and patriotism,” according to Gallup.
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This summer’s World Cup brought patriotism to the forefront and helped unite Americans in the 250th anniversary of the nation’s founding. (Jose Hernandez/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Overall, Americans on a broad-scale view honesty (34%), responsibility (32%) and integrity (31%) as the values most urgently needed. Beneath that surface, though, the parties see starkly different remedies for what is most needed in the nation.
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Republicans place the highest priority on patriotism (46%), followed by responsibility (41%) and honesty (38%). Democrats as a whole valued equality highest (44%), followed by fairness (34%) and honesty (32%).
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Independents land between both sides, most frequently selecting honesty (34%), responsibility (32%) and integrity (31%), with only 15% selecting patriotism.
Despite the large disparity between Democrats and Republicans on the value of patriotism, it was one of the most selected values that participants said they believed was shared by most Americans regardless of their political leanings. When given a list of 12 choices, 32% said they believed most Americans shared patriotism as a value, trailing only freedom at 38%.
Those 12 values were: freedom, patriotism, service, kindness, respect, equality, fairness, responsibility, integrity, courage, honesty and humility. More than three quarters of Americans (76%) believed people shared at least one of those values regardless of politics, while 59% said at least two, and 46% said at least three.
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Beyond patriotism, the second-largest partisan divide emerged around equality, chosen by 44% of Democrats compared to just 10% of Republicans – a 34-point spread. Fairness similarly split the electorate, chosen by 34% of Democrats versus 15% of Republicans.
The findings also reveal an age divide that mirrors the political split. Adults aged 65 and older are nearly three times as likely as adults aged 18-39 to say the nation needs more patriotism (32% vs. 12%).
Despite the deep differences in priorities, the survey revealed broad consensus on political tolerance. Nearly eight in ten Americans (79%) – including 84% of Democrats, 81% of independents, and 72% of Republicans – said respecting different values matters more than sharing the same ones. Additionally, 70% of respondents said elected leaders must be willing to compromise across party lines, even at personal political cost.
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“Perhaps, then, the ultimate shared value is that Americans agree to disagree,” the Gallup analysis concluded.
The survey was conducted May 12–22 among a nationally representative panel of more than 3,000 U.S. adults.
