After Kirk assassination, new polls show growing fears of political violence
Several new polls released in the week following Charlie Kirk’s assassination show Americans are deeply concerned about political violence and division in the country. A Reuters poll found 63% of Americans believe political rhetoric has done “a lot” to encourage violence, while 31% said it has contributed “a little.”
That’s a total of 94% who believe the way people talk about politics matters to some degree. The results were similar across party lines. The poll showed 63% of Republicans and 70% of Democrats agree that political rhetoric encourages violence.
The poll was conducted online over three days ending Sunday and surveyed 1,037 U.S. adults with a confidence rate of nearly 3%.
Widespread concern over violence, division
Another poll from Morning Consult conducted between September 10-15 polled 2,239 U.S. adults. It found 86% of Americans are “concerned” about political violence in the United States.
A separate poll found 83% of Americans believe the country has become “somewhat” or “much more” politically divided over the past five years. The September 12–15, 2025, Economist/YouGov poll was conducted among 1,567 U.S. adult citizens.
The same survey asked about the motivation of Kirk’s assassin. Responses split sharply along party lines: 68% of Republicans said they believe he was motivated by left-wing beliefs, compared to just 10% of Democrats.
Consensus on division, difference on motives
Together, the early polling shows Americans widely agree that political violence is a serious concern and that rhetoric is fueling the threat. There is also broad agreement that the nation is more polarized today than in recent years — even as there are partisan differences on interpreting the shooter’s motives.
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Ella Rae Greene, Editor In Chief
