A new Pew Research survey provides insight into how Americans anticipate power and influence in Washington, D.C., will shift under President Biden.
By the numbers: Nearly two-thirds of Americans think Black people and women will gain influence under the new president, while half say evangelical Christians — a group wooed and won over by former President Trump — will lose out.
One telling stat: Two out of every three Republicans said “people like yourself” would lose influence in Washington with Biden as president.
- Democrats now control the House, Senate and White House after four years of Republicans largely calling the shots. Still, three out of five Democrats said the influence of people like themselves would not be affected (50%) or would lessen (10%).
Between the lines: There is some agreement about which groups will rise or fall with shifts in the D.C. power balance, but Republicans and those who lean Republican tend to be more pessimistic about the influence of the elderly, military and white people over the next four to eight years.
- Nearly half of Republicans and Republican leaners say wealthy people will gain influence under Biden, while a plurality of Democrats and Democratic leaners (44%) think they will lose it.
- The responses reflect how both parties have embraced aspects of modern populism, often accusing the other of catering to the interests of the wealthy.
