CBS News poll analysis on words voters pick to describe the Democratic and Republican parties

Long before campaign season, the images or brands of the political parties are in the public mind. We asked people to weigh in right now on various descriptions of each of them. 

Their answers reveal a portrait of a very divided nation. One in which one party is seen more as “weak” while the other is “extreme.” And while each set of partisans thinks they’re reasonable, they tend to say the other is not. And neither party elicits glowing descriptions from independents. 

From a list of descriptors, “weak” is the way most voters describe the Democratic Party, while “extreme” is the word most picked to describe the Republican Party. These sentiments are generally similar to what we’ve seen in recent years and how Americans viewed the parties as recently as last fall.

The perception of the Democratic Party as “weak” is not necessarily an artifact of the party’s being out of power. Voters’ perceptions of the Democratic Party in 2022 (when the party controlled Congress and the White House) were similar: More called it “weak” than “strong,” and most did not describe it as “effective.” At that time, most voters also called the GOP “extreme,” so that dynamic also remains.

The Democratic Party continues to lag behind the Republicans in being seen as “effective” or “strong”, although the percentage who ascribe these words to the GOP falls short of a majority. 

These relatively less positive descriptors for the Democratic Party are driven in part by somewhat lackluster views among its own rank and file. 

The nation’s Republicans, on the other hand, are more unified and more positive in their descriptions of the GOP.

For example, 45% of Democrats describe their party as “strong,” compared to 80% of Republicans who pick that descriptor for their party. And more Democrats label their party “weak” than Republicans do theirs. (More Republicans do call their party extreme than Democrats do theirs, but it’s still relatively few.)

Relatedly, we’ve seen some of this in perceptions of how the Democratic Party deals with President Trump. Recent CBS News polling found few of the country’s Democrats have “a lot” of confidence in the ability of congressional Democrats to effectively oppose the president.

The most liberal wing of the nation’s Democrats is the most critical: Most don’t have confidence in the Democrats in Congress to effectively oppose Mr. Trump, and that may be reflected in how they describe their own party. They are less apt than the moderates to call their party “effective” or “strong.” 

Beyond energizing their own partisans, the parties will look to appeal to independent voters. 

Like voters overall, most independents view the Democratic Party as “weak” and the GOP as “extreme.”  They do give the Republicans an edge on being “strong” and “effective,” while the Democrats have an advantage on being “reasonable” — though they give both parties relatively low marks on each of these measures.

This analysis is based on a CBS News/YouGov survey that was conducted with a nationally representative sample of 2,425 U.S. adults interviewed between February 3-5, 2026. The sample was weighted to be representative of adults nationwide according to gender, age, race, and education, based on the U.S. Census American Community Survey and Current Population Survey, as well as 2024 presidential vote. The margin of error is ±2.4 points.