Poll: Americans don't want to talk politics at Thanksgiving
Published Date: 11/24/2022
Source: axios.com
Data: Axios and Ipsos Research; Chart: Tory Lysik/Axios Visuals

The overwhelming majority of Americans say they don't want to talk politics at the Thanksgiving table, according to the Axios-Ipsos Two Americas Index.

Yes, but: 41% of Democrats and 29% of Republicans said they'll probably do it anyway.


What they're saying: "Arguing about politics may be Americans' least favorite Thanksgiving activity, but it may actually serve an important function in our body politic," said Cliff Young, Ipsos' president of U.S. Public Affairs.

  • "People who engage in these kinds of discussions across the aisle are more likely to accept the legitimacy of elections."

Details: Our first post-midterms survey on American polarity found mixed feelings about the midterm elections. But the survey found broad consensus that losing candidates must concede; seven in 10 respondents said that's the only way the country can move forward.

  • 61% overall — and 53% of those who identified as Republicans — say the GOP must move on from Donald Trump.
  • But only 55% say Americans must reject claims that the 2020 presidential election results weren't valid.

The intrigue: Respondents who said they have shared meals in the past year with people of different partisanship, race or ethnicity were more likely to say that Americans must reject election deniers' claims and move beyond Trump; that losers must formally concede — and that they'll probably discuss politics at Thanksgiving.

Methodology: This Axios/Ipsos Poll was conducted Nov. 18-21 by Ipsos on their online survey panels in English. This poll is based on a sample of 1,005 general population adults age 18 or older, weighted on age, gender, race/ethnicity, education, and location to be nationally representative.

  • The credibility interval is ±3.8 percentage points at the 95% confidence level, for results based on the entire sample of adults.