8 in 10 say US remains divided: survey

A majority of Americans said in a new poll that they believe the United States is divided amid increased racial and political tensions in the country.

In a national poll released by NBC News on Sunday, 82 percent of respondents said they believe the country is divided, with 50 percent of those surveyed saying they feel the nation is mainly divided and 24 percent who said it was totally divided. 

{mosads}When asked to rank the most important issues facing the country 30 percent identified the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Uniting the country was ranked second on the list of issues, with a quarter of respondents ranking the issue as most important, compared to 23 percent who answered race relations.

As the Biden presidency enters its hundredth day, respondents were asked for their feelings on his handling on the issues over the past few months. 

A majority of respondents said they approve of President Biden’s response to the pandemic, as well as his efforts to unite the country. Just under half of Americans, or 49 percent, said they approve of his handling of race relations.

Biden received his lowest marks of approval on border security and immigration with 33 percent. He received a 34 percent approval rating on the gun issue and 35 percent when it comes to dealings with China.  

Forty-four percent of respondents said Biden was off to a good or great start when asked about their overall thoughts on his start to the presidency. By contrast, 21 percent of those polled said he was off to a fair start and 34 percent of respondents said he was off to a poor start.

When asked about Biden’s leadership and plans for the country, more than half, or 56 percent, said they were more hopeful, compared to 42 percent of respondents who said they were more doubtful. 

Around this time in 2017 under former President Trump, 46 percent of respondents said they were more hopeful for his leadership and plans for the country when he took office versus 52 percent who said they were more doubtful. 

Of those polled who are registered voters, 41 percent said they voted for Trump in the past election, compared to 46 percent who said they voted for Biden during the 2020 election.

Forty percent of overall respondents identified as Democratic or Democratic-leaning and 32 percent responded as Republican or Republican-leaning. Fifteen percent identified as strictly independent.

The poll was conducted between April 17-20 and surveyed 1,000 adults. The margin of error for all of the interviews is plus or minus 3.10 percentage points and plus or minus 3.49 percentage points for the 790 interviews among registered voters.