AJC poll says Georgia Democrats want a tougher response to Trump
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s new poll of likely Democratic primary voters shows economic issues like jobs and inflation still rank as their top concerns. But “standing up to Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans” comes in a surprisingly close second at 20%.
It underscores how deeply the GOP president continues to shape Democratic politics. It also reflects the growing pressure among left-leaning voters on their party officials to confront Trump more directly, in both rhetoric and policy.
The dynamic is especially vivid in Georgia, where more progressive Democrats are urging a harder edge against the Republican’s second-term agenda. Nearly one-quarter of self-described liberals in the poll said opposing Trump is their top priority.
“Democrats are too meek,” said Fred Edwards, a liberal voter from Cobb County who wants his party to show more resolve. “They need to go after Republicans with the same vigor they use to go after us. Too many times we take the gentlemanly approach to politics.”
The base’s frustration is already spilling over just nine months into Trump’s second term. Voters are demanding their candidates push to impeach the president. Massive protests on Georgia’s streets have pushed against his policies. Town halls have been marked by explosive exchanges and violent arrests. Younger Democrats are calling for generational change.
U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, facing a tough reelection battle, and leading gubernatorial contenders have all embraced the edgier approach, urging sharper tactics to counter Trump’s dismantling of federal agencies and steep health care cuts.
Ossoff has also displayed more moderate tendencies, including a recent break with his party by voting for a failed GOP-backed bill to pay essential federal workers during the government shutdown. He has voted a dozen other times with other Democrats against other bills to reopen the government.
‘In your face’
There’s political logic to the strategy; the poll shows that 90% of Democrats say they oppose Trump’s administration and some of its norm-shattering policies, including his deployment of National Guard troops to U.S. cities.
“Everything the Democratic Party has been doing is just not working. We’ve got to shake things up,” said Stephanie Hobbs, an educator from north DeKalb County. “We need to be more in-your-face, because doing what we’ve always done isn’t going to get us anywhere.”
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AJC poll says Georgia Democrats want a tougher response to Trump
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Even so, some party leaders worry that a relentless focus on opposing Trump could come at a cost, crowding out a more forward-looking message that defines what Democrats stand for in a post-Trump political era. Statewide contenders are trying to walk that line.
“It’s essential that we give voters something to vote for, not just something to vote against,” said Jason Esteves, a former Democratic legislator running for governor. “We have to continue to remind people what we can do for them to grow the money in their pockets, but also make sure that our children have more opportunity than they did.”
Yet he and other prominent Democrats know the risks in ignoring the base’s fury. The Democratic Party is facing plunging approval ratings — the AJC’s May poll showed support at a nine-year low among registered voters — and the dissatisfaction is sharpest among young progressives.
Roughly one-quarter of likely Democratic primary voters say they don’t have a favorable impression of their own party, including one-third of voters under 29. Many say Democrats haven’t done enough to halt Trump’s efforts to reshape the federal bureaucracy, upend U.S. diplomacy and reorder the economy.
“Democrats are letting him trample the Constitution. They’re letting him break laws,” said Anita Byrd, a military veteran from Henry County. “And I don’t understand why Congress isn’t stopping him.”
‘Our way’
But Democrats are trying — most visibly during the ongoing government shutdown. With limited leverage in a GOP-controlled Washington, party leaders are attempting to use the stalemate to demand Republicans extend expiring health care subsidies.
The strategy appears to be connecting with the Democratic base. The poll shows 84% of likely Democratic primary voters blame Trump and congressional Republicans for the shutdown, which has furloughed hundreds of thousands of federal workers and could jeopardize food assistance benefits for 1.3 million Georgians.
Among likely GOP primary voters, the view is almost a mirror image: More than three-quarters say Democrats in Congress are responsible. About 10% blame Trump and his allies and an additional 10% say both sides share fault.
Ted Stone is a former Democrat who is now a proud conservative voter in Laurens County. He said he sees the merits to both sides of many arguments, but on this one he’s drawing a line.
“Democrats own it. Their position is that it’s our way or the highway,” he said. “They lost power and now they’re like the little child stamping their feet saying, ‘Why didn’t I get what I want?’”
Republicans also listed economic issues as their top concern, with roughly one-third saying either jobs or inflation as the most important issue facing Georgia today.
That was followed by two other issues that dominated Trump’s campaign platform: immigration (13%) and public safety (12%). Other issues, such as taxes, gun violence, abortion and health care, registered in the single digits.
The polls of likely voters in both party primaries, conducted by the University of Georgia’s School of Public and International Affairs, provide the first detailed snapshot of Georgia’s midterm landscape.
One poll surveyed 1,000 likely Democratic primary voters Oct. 13—21. Another surveyed 1,000 likely GOP primary voters Oct. 15—23. Both had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.
About the Author
Greg Bluestein is the Atlanta Journal Constitution's chief political reporter. He is also an author, TV analyst and co-host of the Politically Georgia podcast.
