Overview
- Majorities accurately foresaw a Black president, legalized same-sex marriage, and the emergence of a deadly new disease.
- High-confidence predictions that did not arrive by 2025 included a female president, a cure for cancer, and people routinely living to 100.
- Respondents expected declines in personal privacy and freedom along with higher crime, poorer environmental quality, and lower moral values.
- Many anticipated better race relations and wider access to medical care even as they expected affordability to worsen.
- Gallup’s satisfaction gauge fell from about 60% in 1998 to 24% in 2025, reflecting a markedly darker national outlook.