U.S. Constitution ‘Rooted in Racism’ and ‘Sexist,’ Say Democrats (Poll)

U.S. Constitution ‘Rooted in Racism’ say 57% of Democrats, and ‘Sexist,’ 64% of Democrats agree—Heartland/Rasmussen Poll.

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, IL (July 13, 2022) – Strong majorities of Democrats and self-identified liberals believe the U.S. Constitution is “rooted in racism” and is a “sexist document.” Nearly half of Democrats also believe the Constitution should be “mostly or completely rewritten.”

A new poll by The Heartland Institute and Rasmussen Reports of 1,025 likely voters found that 57% of Democrats and 65% of liberals believe the Constitution is “rooted in racism, and 64% of Democrats and 69% of liberals say the Constitution is “a sexist document that gives men advantages over women.”

The poll also found that 49% of Democrats think the Constitution should be mostly or completely rewritten.

Despite these grim views of America’s founding governing document, a full 74% Democrats and 69% of liberals have a “favorable” view of the Constitution.”

The poll was conducted from July 6-7, 2022. Among those surveyed in the poll, 33% were Republicans, 35% were Democrats, and 32% were Independents; 48% were men, 52% were women; 67% were white, 13% were black, 13% were Hispanic, and 7% identified as “other.”

Overall, 82% of likely voters, no matter their political affiliation, have a “very favorable” or “somewhat favorable” opinion of the Constitution. Among Democrats, only 20% have a “very unfavorable” or “somewhat unfavorable” opinion.

The strongest supporters of the Constitution were Republicans and conservatives. Among Republicans, 76% had a “very favorable” view of the Constitution and 17% had a “somewhat favorable” view, for a combined 93 percent favorable. For conservatives, it was nearly identical with 92% overall “favorable.”

Democrats See Constitution as Racist

Although only 35% of likely voters believe the Constitution is a document rooted in racism, 57% of Democrats and 65% of liberals agree with this statement. (On that question, 27% of Democrats “strongly agree” and 30% “somewhat agree”; 34% of liberals “strongly agree” and 31% “somewhat agree.”)

On the other end of the spectrum, 13% of Republicans and 19% of conservatives think the Constitution is rooted in racism. Among Independent voters, only 33% think the Constitution is inherently racist.

Most black voters (66%) agree that the U.S. Constitution is rooted in racism while 43% of Hispanic voters and 28% of white voters disagree with this statement. It is far more likely for young voters, those aged 19 to 39-years-old, to believe the Constitution is rooted in racism (49%), whereas 33% of 40 to 64-year-olds and only 21% of voters over the age of 65 agree.

Democrats See Constitution as Sexist

The poll found that just 41% of all likely voters believe the Constitution is a sexist document that gives men advantages over women. Meanwhile, 64% of Democrats and 69% of liberals believe this to be true. (On that question, 32% of Democrats said they either “strongly agree” or “somewhat agree”; 35% of liberals “strongly agree” and 34% “somewhat agree.”)

On the other hand, just 20% of Republicans and 22% of conservatives agree that the Constitution is a sexist document that gives men advantages over women. Likewise, only 37% of Independents believe the Constitution is rooted in sexism.

Most young voters (54%) tend to agree that the Constitution is sexist. On the contrary, only 29% of voters over the age of 65 and 37% of voters aged 40 to 64-years-old agree that the Constitution is a sexist document.

Perhaps most interestingly, less than half of women voters (49%) do not think the Constitution is inherently sexist.

Out with the Old, In with the New?

Incredibly, the U.S. Constitution is the oldest, active national constitution in world history. Written in 1787 and ratified in 1789, the U.S. Constitution has remained the supreme law of the land for more than 230 years and counting.

While 63% of likely voters believe the Constitution should remain as it is, the same cannot be said for those on the left end of the political spectrum. In fact, 49% of Democrats and 46% of liberals think the Constitution should be mostly or completely rewritten. (On that question, 20% of Democrats “strongly agree” and 29% “somewhat agree”; 21% of liberals “strongly agree” and 25% “somewhat agree.”)

In contrast, only 17% of Republicans, 21% of conservatives, and 28% of Independents believe the Constitution should be discarded and replaced.

Meanwhile, a majority of young voters (51%) agree the Constitution should be rewritten, whereas only 25% of middle-aged and just 17% of older voters agree with this statement.

National Survey of 1,025 Likely Voters on the Constitution
Conducted July 6-7, 2022
By The Heartland Institute and Rasmussen Reports

Do you have a very favorable, somewhat favorable, somewhat unfavorable, or very unfavorable opinion of the U.S. Constitution?

58% – very favorable

24% – somewhat favorable

10% – somewhat unfavorable

4% – very unfavorable

5% – not sure

Do you strongly agree, somewhat agree, somewhat disagree, or strongly disagree with the following statement?: “The U.S. Constitution is a document rooted in racism.”

15% – strongly agree

20% – somewhat agree

16% – somewhat disagree

44% – strongly disagree

5% – not sure

Do you strongly agree, somewhat agree, somewhat disagree, or strongly disagree with the following statement?: “The U.S. Constitution is a sexist document that gives men advantages over women.”

17% – strongly agree

24% – somewhat agree

14% – somewhat disagree

42% – strongly disagree

4% – not sure

Do you strongly agree, somewhat agree, somewhat disagree, or strongly disagree with the following statement?: “The U.S. Constitution should be mostly or completely rewritten.”

12% – strongly agree

19% – somewhat agree

14% – somewhat disagree

49% – strongly disagree

6% – not sure

NOTE: Margin of Sampling Error, +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence

For more poll results and crosstabs. For more Budget & Tax News.