The Pandemic is Over, Says 57 Percent of Republicans — And 4 Percent of Democrats
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Republicans are far more likely than Democrats to say the coronavirus pandemic is over, according to results from a recent Gallup web panel survey.
In general, twenty-nine percent of those who took the survey believe that the pandemic is completely over, while 62 percent believe their lives have gone “somewhat” back to normal, 54 percent claim their lives are now entirely undisrupted by the pandemic, and 40 percent do not expect their lives will ever go back to normal.
When broken down by demographic, the findings from Gallup’s June 14-20 survey show that 57 percent of Republicans say the pandemic is over compared to 4 percent of Democrats.
Differences in age, gender, and region of the country also contributed to the results, as men were more likely than women to view the pandemic as over, while those aged 18-34 were less likely than those above 35-years-old to say the pandemic has ended.
Those in the Northeast region of the United States were additionally less likely to say the pandemic is over.
Similar to those who reported fewer disruptions, Americans have also confirmed feeling a return of some sort of normalcy in their lives.
“While 15% of U.S. adults say their life is ‘completely back to normal,’ 62% describe their life as ‘somewhat’ but not completely normal, and 23% say it is ‘not yet back to normal,'” Gallup’s Megan Brenan reported of the results. “Moreover, the percentage of U.S. adults who report that normalcy has not been restored in their lives has shrunk by 11 percentage points since May.”
Gallup largely attributed the latest sense of ease around the pandemic to the successful vaccine push in the United States, writing, “Although President Joe Biden has acknowledged that his July 4 deadline for reaching 70% vaccination among U.S. adults will not be realized, once it is, Democrats and independents might join Republicans in thinking the pandemic is over.”
“Now that nearly two-thirds of U.S. adults have received at least one dose of the vaccine against COVID-19 and most facets of everyday life have reopened, Americans increasingly see less disruption in their lives and feel a sense of normalcy returning,” Brenan added. “However, for the most part, they think the pandemic is still ongoing. Given the quick-changing developments across the U.S., this judgment could soon change. Yet, like many aspects of the pandemic, views on this measure are sharply polarized politically.”
