GALLUP NEWS SERVICE
PRINCETON, NJ -- For three full years, spanning 36 consecutive months since April 2004, the Iraq war has topped Gallup's ranking of the "most important problem" facing the country. Iraq also led the list in early 2003 just before the start of the war, but the issue fell behind the economy for about a year from March 2003 through March 2004.
The latest data come from Gallup's Mar. 11-14, 2007, survey in which 35% of Americans identify Iraq (or war generally) as the top problem facing the United States at this time. No other single issue comes close. Healthcare, immigration, and dissatisfaction with government each garner just 8%, making them the second-ranked issues behind the situation in Iraq. The only other issues mentioned by at least 5% of Americans are the economy (7%), and ethics, terrorism, and poverty (5% each). The current results differ from last month's by no more than a few percentage points.
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What do you think is the most important problem facing this country today? |
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Mar. 11-14,
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Feb. 1-4,
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|
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% |
% |
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Situation in Iraq/war |
35 |
38 |
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Poor healthcare/hospitals; high cost of healthcare |
8 |
8 |
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Dissatisfaction with government/politicians; poor leadership; corruption |
8 |
7 |
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Immigration/illegal aliens |
8 |
5 |
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Economy in general |
7 |
7 |
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Terrorism |
5 |
7 |
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Ethics/moral/religious/family decline; dishonesty; lack of integrity |
5 |
4 |
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Poverty/hunger/homelessness |
5 |
3 |
Democrats Focus on Iraq
Democrats (including independents who lean Democratic) are especially unified in perceiving Iraq to be the nation's most salient issue. More than 4 in 10 Democrats cite the situation in Iraq as the nation's most important problem, while just about 1 in 10 Democrats mention healthcare, making it the group's second-ranking issue. The war in Iraq and healthcare are followed by dissatisfaction with government, the economy, and education according to Democrats.
Even though it is mentioned by only 25% of Republicans, Iraq is still the leading problem mentioned by that group.
There are significant differences in the amount of emphasis placed by Democrats and Republicans on a number of other problems:
- 13% of Republicans mention immigration, compared to only 4% of Democrats.
- 11% of Republicans mention terrorism, compared to 1% of Democrats.
- 8% of Republicans mention ethical decline, compared to 1% of Democrats.
- Republicans are slightly less likely to cite healthcare (5% vs. 9%) and education (2% vs. 6%).
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Top Issues Named as Most Important Problem Facing the U.S.
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Republicans/Lean Republican |
Democrats/Lean Democratic |
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Iraq (25%) |
Iraq (44%) |
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Immigration (13%) |
Healthcare (9%) |
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Terrorism (11%) |
Government (8%) |
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Ethical decline (8%) |
Economy (8%) |
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Government (6%) |
Education (6%) |
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Economy (6%) |
Poverty (5%) |
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Healthcare (5%) |
Immigration (4%) |
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Poverty (4%) |
Terrorism (1%) |
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Education (2%) |
Ethical decline (1%) |
Bygone Issues
Results of Gallup's "most important problem" question have been notably stark during the past several months, with only the situation in Iraq garnering double-digit mentions from the American public.
This contrasts with other points during George W. Bush's presidency, when other issues figured much more prominently than they do today. Those that have fallen the most since their high point during Bush's presidency include terrorism, fuel prices, and unemployment. Mentions of immigration, Social Security, education, and energy are also more than 10 points behind their recent high marks.
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Issues Previously Mentioned by 10% of Americans or More
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Current
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Highest percentage
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Date of
|
|
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% |
% |
% |
|
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Healthcare |
8 |
14 |
Sept. 2004 |
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Immigration |
8 |
19 |
Apr. 2006 |
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Government/leadership |
8 |
12 |
Dec. 2005 |
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Terrorism |
5 |
46 |
Oct. 2001 |
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Ethics/honesty |
5 |
13 |
Jan. 2001 |
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Education |
4 |
16 |
Mar. 2001 |
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Unemployment |
3 |
20 |
Feb. 2004 |
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Fuel prices |
3 |
22 |
May 2006 |
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Social Security |
2 |
13 |
Feb.-Mar. 2005 |
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Energy |
1 |
12 |
May 2001 |
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Crime |
1 |
10 |
Oct. 2002 |
Survey Methods
Results are based on telephone interviews with 1,009 national adults, aged 18 and older, conducted Mar. 11-14, 2007. For results based on the total sample of national adults, one can say with 95% confidence that the maximum margin of sampling error is ±3 percentage points. In addition to sampling error, question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of public opinion polls.