May 2021

In focus groups with swing voters in key battleground states, the Georgetown University Institute of Politics and Public Service found that voters were dismayed at the lack of civility and unity in the country today. There was broad agreement that the country is more divided than ever, and that our divisions are only growing deeper. Some voters saw the division in the government reflecting similar divisions in their homes and workplaces. There was shared concern about violence in the country, although Biden and Trump voters expressed different ideas about who was perpetuating that violence. Both groups acknowledged that a potential civil war in the country did not seem impossible, although most did not feel that it was imminent either.

Conducted ahead of the June 2021 Battleground and Civility Poll, the two Zoom focus groups were conducted online across 14 battleground states in May. The first focus group was comprised of independent white women who voted for Biden but either voted for Trump in 2016 or whose partner voted for Trump in 2020. The second group was independent white senior voters, women and men, who voted for Trump in 2020 but felt conflicted about their vote or had previously considered voting for Biden before changing their minds. The first focus group of cross-pressured white women Biden voters was conducted on May 11th and the second focus group of cross-pressured white senior Trump voters was conducted on the 12th .

View the full press release of the Battleground and Civility Poll with detailed results, or click on the links below to focus group summaries from Lake Research Partners and The Tarrance Group: