Americans are ready to choose a socialist president: what exactly do they mean by this term

At the same time, they diverge in understanding what socialism is.

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This is evidenced by the results of a new public opinion poll.

The Gallup poll also showed that 47 percent of Americans are willing to vote for a socialist in the US presidential election.

According to the survey, 51 percent of adult Americans believe that socialism would harm the country, while 43 percent see it as a blessing.

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Gallup noted that the results contrasted with the joint survey of Roper and Fortune, conducted in 1942, which found that 40 percent of Americans saw evil in socialism, 25 percent was good, and 34 percent had no definite opinion.

A previous Gallup study showed that the very definition of socialism used by Americans has changed over the years. Almost every fourth of them connects this concept with social equality, and only 17 percent mean the classical definition, which implies a certain degree of state control over the means of production.

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Most Democrats claim a positive attitude towards socialism in Gallup polls, which have been conducted since 2010. In the last study, which was conducted in the 2018 year, this proportion was 57 percent.

In the same April poll, Gallup asked Americans what they would prefer: a free market or government control in some areas of economic and social life.

Technological innovation and wealth distribution have become areas where the largest number of Americans would prefer the free market. Most also want the free market to regulate the overall economy, wages, higher education, and health care.

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Health care and higher education are areas where Democrats are proposing to significantly increase government participation. At least four out of ten Americans are sympathetic to policies that imply an increase in the role of government in these areas.

“Americans have complex views on socialism,” said sociologist Mohamed Younis. - But what exactly do Americans understand by this term is an ambiguous and multifaceted question. Although half of Americans believe that socialism will be bad for the country, about two-thirds say that the government has a greater impact on the economy than the free market, or that it is equally influenced by both. "

According to the survey, about four out of ten Americans are ready to accept some form of socialism or socialist politics. Modern democrats are more positive about socialism than capitalism.

The Gallup poll also showed that 47 percent of Americans are willing to vote for a socialist in the US presidential election. Although it is almost half of the adult population of the country, even more respondents declared their readiness to vote for an atheist (58 percent) or a Muslim (60 percent) if such presidential candidates are found.

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