The issue of skyrocketing threats to safety and property in major cities has risen rapidly to the forefront of voters’ minds, with over two-thirds of Americans saying crime is a major problem and a majority saying crime has gone up since 2020 according to new survey data.
This comes at a time when the Trump Administration is taking crime seriously, beginning in the nation’s capitol. President Donald Trump issued an executive order this week declaring a crime emergency in the District of Columbia and promising to send in the National Guard to restore order. According to the executive order, Washington, D.C. has become one of the most violent cities in the country.
“The magnitude of the violent crime crisis places the District of Columbia among the most violent jurisdictions in the United States”, the executive order reads. “In 2024, the District of Columbia averaged one of the highest robbery and murder rates of large cities nationwide. Indeed, the District of Columbia now has a higher violent crime, murder, and robbery rate than all 50 States, recording a homicide rate in 2024 of 27.54 per 100,000 residents.”
Indeed, Washington, D.C. was listed as the fourth most violent from a list of 24 U.S. cities based on homicide rates according to a 2024 study by the Rochester Institute of Technology, a private research university in Henrietta, New York.
While the President has declared an emergency in the nation’s capital and is promising to deploy National Guard troops to curb violent crime and property crime in D.C., crime is rapidly becoming a central focus for Americans across the nation.
A YouGov survey released August 11 found Americans say by 35 points, 55 percent to 20 percent, that crime rates have risen a little or a lot since 2020, not decreased. A full 37 percent of Americans — the largest group — says crime has increased a lot since 2020.
Another YouGov survey released August 11 found over two-thirds of Americans — 67 percent — say crime is a major problem, while only 23 percent say crime is a minor problem, a 44-point difference.
As one might expect, Democrats appear more willing to minimize the impact of crime. Although over half of Democrats — 53 percent — admit crime is a major problem, 35 percent disagree that it is, an eighteen-point gap. Republicans say crime is a major issue by 83 points, 90 percent to seven percent according to they survey. Among independents, 63 percent say crime is a major issue, and 26 percent say it is a minor issue, a 37-point difference.
However, despite a significant share of Democrats denying the impact of crime, groups that tend to lean Democrat are some of the most willing to admit crime is a major problem. Women see crime as a bigger issue than men, with 71 percent of women assaying crime is a major issue and only 18 percent saying it is not, a 53-point difference. Men also see crime as a major issue but by a lesser margin than women do. Men say crime is major issue by 34 points, 63 percent to 29 percent.
Blacks and Hispanics, groups that in aggregate lean Democrat but have been rapidly shifting toward the right in recent years due to issues like crime, immigration, and the economy, are also more likely to say crime is a major issue than whites are.
According to the survey, Hispanic Americans say crime is a major issue by the greatest margin of any group, with Hispanics saying by a 59-point margin, 73 percent to 14 percent, that crime is a major issue. Black Americans say crime is a major issue by a 58-point margin, 71 percent to 13 percent. Whites say crime is a major issue by a 38-point margin, 65 percent to 27 percent. There is a 21-point gap between the net share of white Americans who see crime as a major issue and the net share of Hispanic Americans who do. There is a 20-point gap between the net share of white Americans and the net share of Black Americans who see crime as a major issue according to the survey.
While Democrats are much less willing to admit there is a crime problem in the United States, groups that tend to lean Democrat, including women and Black and Hispanic voters, are more likely to say that crime is a major issue. This indicates a fracturing of the narrative on the left, and could cause serious divisions if Democrats continue to turn a blind eye.
Much like their unwillingness to stem the flow of illegal aliens and illegal materials across the southern border, Democrats’ inaction on addressing crime is not likely to raise their public image. In working to secure the border, upping the number of Immigration and Customs officers sent to sanctuary cities, and deploying the National Guard to begin restoring order to the nation’s capital, President Trump is demonstrating he is willing to tackle the crime issue directly.
Manzanita Miller is the senior political analyst at Americans for Limited Government Foundation.
