Overview
- Gallup and AP‑NORC polls published in late June found combined “extremely” or “very” proud responses at roughly 53 percent, the lowest reading in Gallup’s trend since 2001.
- The decline is concentrated in Democrats and younger cohorts, with Gallup showing only about 14 percent of self‑identified Democrats saying they are “extremely proud” and far fewer adults under 30 saying national identity is highly important.
- AP‑NORC compares 2017 baselines and reports big drops in specific attributes since then: pride in how U.S. democracy works is down 14 points, pride in the armed forces is down 19 points, and pride in U.S. history is down 14 points.
- Partisanship now shapes which institutions inspire pride: Republicans remain much more likely to report strong pride in the country and the military, while Democrats and many independents report growing disaffection.
- Analysts link the long slide to a decade of polarization, the pandemic, economic strains, and recent foreign‑policy tensions, and warn that sustained declines in shared pride could weaken civic cohesion, trust in institutions, and patterns of political engagement.