Gallup: Most think they’re a ‘have’

Around three in five Americans view themselves as being one of the “haves,” according to new polling from Gallup.

Roughly two in five – 38 percent – say they’re “have nots,” the polling company found, with only 5 percent believing they’re neither.

{mosads}The 58 percent who called themselves haves is in line with more than 15 years worth of Gallup polling. About two out of every three people said they were a have in 1998, during a particularly strong economy.

The have nots, on the other hand, have risen somewhat in recent years, with those claiming neither on the decline. Around one in four Americans said they were a have not a dozen years ago.

That rise came amid the 2008 financial crisis and as policymakers have focused more attention on income inequality in recent years.

But Gallup said that a majority of Americans — 54 percent — don’t believe the country is divided among the haves and the have nots, even as the vast majority classify themselves as one or the other.