Less Than 20 Percent of Americans Mostly Agree With Either Major Political Party, Poll Finds

Amid an increasingly divided political landscape, a new poll suggests that American voters are united on at least one issue: that they don't fully agree with the politics of either the Democratic or Republican parties.

The poll, which was released Monday by The Economist/YouGov, found that most Americans view the politics of both the Democratic and Republican parties to be either to the left or right of their own views. Only 18 percent of respondents said that Republican Party politics were "about the same" as their own politics, while 19 percent said the same of the Democratic Party.

While 36 percent of Democrats agreed that the Democratic Party's politics were about the same as their own, a full 50 percent said that the party promoted politics that were either to the left or right of their views. Only 27 percent of Republicans agreed with the Republican Party, while 55 percent said that the party's politics were to the right or left of their own.

Among Democrats, 22 percent said that the Democratic Party was "slightly to the right" or "much more to the right" of their own views. Another 28 percent of Democrats said that the party was too far to the left, while 15 percent were undecided.

A 38 percent plurality of Republicans said that the GOP was slightly or much more to the right of their politics, while 17 percent said the party was to their left and 18 percent were undecided.

Slightly more independent voters aligned with the Republican Party than the Democratic Party, 22 percent to 18 percent. Perhaps unsurprisingly, most did not agree with the politics of either party.

A 44 percent plurality of independents said the Republican Party was to their right politically, while 14 percent said it was to their left. A similar 46 percent plurality of independents said the Democratic Party was to their left, with 14 percent saying the party was to their right.

Democrats had a slight 52 to 48 percent edge over Republicans when all respondents were asked whether their "political views are closer to the views of" each party.

Only 39 percent of respondents said that they had a favorable view of the Democratic Party, while 50 percent had an unfavorable view. The Republican Party was viewed as favorable by only 31 percent, with a 57 percent majority having an unfavorable view of the party.

The poll was conducted online among 1,500 U.S. adults, including 1,258 registered voters, between November 6 and November 9. It has a margin of error of 3 percent and 3.1 percent among registered voters.

Newsweek reached out to the Democratic National Committee and the Republican National Committee for comment.