Views of the Republican Party and Congress have modestly improved in the last year, while ratings of the Democratic Party remain historically low.
The Supreme Court continues to be viewed more favorably than these other institutions, but its ratings are also near historic lows. And there is widespread skepticism across the political spectrum that federal court judges are fair and impartial in how they decide cases.
Views of the parties
Today, more Americans express a favorable view of the Republican Party (43%) than of the Democratic Party (38%) – a shift from recent years.
Though neither party receives majority-positive assessments from the public, views of the Republican Party have improved in recent years (43% today vs. 35% in December 2023), while ratings of the Democratic Party have held steady (38% today vs. 37% then).
Today, 76% of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents hold a favorable view of their own party. By comparison, 64% of Democrats and Democratic leaners hold a favorable view of the Democratic Party.
Views of the Republican Party
- 87% of Republicans are favorable toward their party – the same share as in 2024.
- 60% of GOP leaners are favorable toward the party, an increase of 8 points since last year.
- 10% of Democrats and 15% of Democratic leaners have a favorable view of the GOP, essentially unchanged in recent years
Views of the Democratic Party
- Among Democrats, 75% have a favorable view of their party – the lowest rating in the last six years.
- Democratic leaners also hold less favorable views of the party than in recent years.
- 9% of Republicans and 20% of Republican leaners have a favorable view of the Democratic Party.
Views of Congress
Today, 34% of Americans have a favorable opinion of Congress – slightly higher than the 30% who said this in 2024.
With the Republican Party now in control of the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate, Republican views of Congress have improved (47% have a favorable opinion today, up from 32% last summer).
In contrast, 22% of Democrats have a favorable view of Congress, down from 29% last year.
Views of the Supreme Court
About half of Americans (51%) hold a favorable view of the Supreme Court, while nearly as many (47%) hold an unfavorable view.
While opinions of the court have rebounded slightly since 2023, they remain near historic lows. By comparison, views were majority favorable for much of the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Views among partisans
- 73% of Republicans have a favorable view of the Supreme Court – identical to views in 2024.
- Democrats are slightly more favorable toward the court than they were last year (30% today vs. 24% then). They remain far less favorable than they were in summer 2022, before the court’s Dobbs decision overturned Roe v. Wade.
Confidence in federal judges
About nine-in-ten Americans (92%) say it is extremely or very important for U.S. federal court judges to be fair and impartial in how they decide cases.
However, Americans express far less confidence that federal judges are fair and impartial: 15% are extremely or very confident of this, 39% are somewhat confident, and 44% are not too or not at all confident.
These views are fairly bipartisan:
- About nine-in-ten Republicans (92%) and Democrats (93%) see fairness and impartiality as extremely or very important.
- Yet small shares in both parties (17% of Republicans and 14% of Democrats) express a high level of confidence that judges are fair and impartial in how they decide cases.
