Voter confidence in the administration of the 2024 elections

The majority of voters say the 2024 elections will be conducted and managed well, both in their community and across the US. And while confidence in election administration across the country has increased since 2020, it remains lower than it was before the 2018 midterm elections.

• 92% of registered voters say elections in your community will be managed and managed at least somewhat well, including 50% who say they will be managed very well. These percentages are comparable to each of the last three general elections.
• 73% of voters say that US elections will be executed and managed at least somewhat well. This is 11 points more than the share that said this in 2020, but 8 points less than the share in 2018.

Harris voters are more positive than Trump voters in their predictions about national election administration:

• 90% of Harris supporters think the US elections in November will be held and managed well, including more than a third (37%) who say they will be managed very good.
• 57% of Trump supporters say the US elections will be well managed, with just 9% saying they will be very well managed.

These differences are even more pronounced among the strongest supporters of the two candidates.

About nine out of ten of those who strongly back Harris (92%) expects elections across the country to be handled well, including nearly half (46%) who say they will be handled very well.

In comparison, 52% of those who strongly back Trump expects US elections to be well managed; only 8% say they will be very well managed. Almost half (46%) say they believe elections across the country will no be executed well.

Widespread trust in local election administration

A 92% majority of registered voters say elections in their community will be well administered, including half of voters who say they will be administered very good. The percentage expressing confidence in electoral administration in their community has remained virtually unchanged in pre-election surveys since 2018.

The percentage of Harris supporters who say elections in their community will be handled at least somewhat well (97%) is on par with the views of Democratic voters in recent elections. But the part that says these elections will be administered very well, it’s higher (49% in 2018, 63% today).

A large majority of Trump supporters (88%) also think the elections in their community will be well managed.

But these voters are less likely than Harris supporters to say elections in their community will be held very good. The percentage who say this is lower than in 2018, when 56% of voters who supported Republican candidates said that the elections in their community would be very well conducted. Today, 37% say this, similar to the views of Republican Party supporters in 2020 and 2022.

Trust in Election Officials and State Election Authorities

Voters are largely confident that their community’s election officials and the officials who run elections in their state will do a good job during next November’s elections.

But voters who support Trump are less likely than those who support Harris to express confidence in these individuals. And Trump supporters’ trust in election officials and election administrators is considerably lower than Republican voters’ trust in 2018.

Community election workers

Nine in ten registered voters say they are confident their local election officials will do a good job, including 48% who are very confident:

• Nearly all Harris supporters (97%) are confident in their local voters, virtually identical to the percentage of Democratic voters who said this in 2018 and 2022. But the percentage who say they are very confident has increased by 12 points since 2018 (50% then, 62% today).
• 84% of Trump supporters are confident that their local election officials will do a good job during this year’s election, including 36% who are very confident. In 2018, 95% of Republican voters expressed confidence in their local election officials, including 60% who were very confident.

State election officials

• 81% of voters trust the officials running elections in their state to do a good job in November, up slightly from 2022.
• 91% of Harris supporters trust state election officials to do a good job. This has increased slightly since 2018, when 87% of Democratic voters said this.
• 72% of Trump supporters express confidence that their states’ election officials will do a good job. This is 15 points below the 87% of Republican voters who said this in 2018.

Harris supporters are largely confident that election officials in their state will do a good job running elections regardless of which party controls the state government, although those who live in states where Democrats hold the governorship, the legislature or both are particularly likely to say this.

Trump supporters in Republican-controlled states are considerably more trusting in their states’ election officials compared to Trump supporters living in other states.

• Nearly all Harris supporters in Democratic-controlled states (94%) say they trust election officials, including 51% who are very confident. A small majority of Trump supporters in Democratic states (57%) are confident in the authorities, with just 12% saying they are very confident.
• The pattern is roughly similar in states where control of government is divided between the two parties: trust in state election officials is much higher among Harris supporters living in these states than among Trump supporters in these states.
• In states with a Republican governor, a GOP-controlled legislature or both, nearly identical percentages of Harris (84%) and Trump (87%) supporters say they are confident state election officials will do a good job in November.

Are parties committed to fair and accurate elections?

Overall, 59% of registered voters say the Democratic Party is committed to ensuring that U.S. elections are fair and accurate, while a nearly identical percentage of voters (58%) say the same about the Republican Party.

But these opinions differ largely along party lines.

More than nine-in-ten Harris supporters (94%) say the Democratic Party is committed to ensuring elections are fair, including 58% who say the party is very committed to doing so.

In contrast, 88% of Trump supporters say the Republican Party is committed to making elections fair.

And while about seven in 10 Harris and Trump supporters say the opposing party is no committed to making elections fair, Trump supporters are more likely to say the Democratic Party is not committed at all (47%) than Harris supporters are to say the same about the Republican Party (39%).

Overall, about a quarter of all voters (27%) say both parties are committed to making elections fair and accurate, with roughly equal proportions of people saying just the Democratic Party (32%) or just the Republican Party (30%) is committed to doing so. About one in ten voters (9%) say none The party is committed to making elections fair and accurate.

GOP Confidence in Absentee Vote Count Remains Low

In-person voting

More than eight in ten registered voters (85%) say they are very or somewhat confident that votes cast in person at polling places will be counted as voters intended in this year’s November elections. This is on par with the percentage who said this in 2022, but slightly below 2020, when 91% expressed confidence.

Since 2020, Trump supporters have become less confident that votes cast in person will be counted as intended. Today, 77% of Trump supporters are confident that these votes will be counted accurately, including 24% who are very confident. The percentage expressing confidence in the in-person vote count is 15 points lower than in 2020; that year, 92% said they were confident, including 48% who were very confident.

Absentee and mail-in ballots

About six-in-ten voters (61%) say they are confident that absentee and mail-in ballots will be counted accurately in November, including a quarter who say they are very confident. The portion that says this is practically the same as in 2020.

As in 2020, Democratic voters are much more confident than Republican voters that the absentee vote count will be accurate: today, 85% of Harris supporters are confident that these votes will be counted as intended, while only 38% of Trump supporters say this.

Mail-in and absentee voters are more confident than other voters in counting mail-in votes

Voters who intend to vote absentee or by mail are much more confident that votes cast this way will be counted accurately than voters who intend to vote in person. This trust gap is particularly pronounced among Trump supporters.

• Two-thirds of Trump supporters who plan to vote absentee (or already have) are confident that absentee votes will be counted as intended. Only 32% of Trump supporters who I intend to vote in person say they are confident that absentee votes will be counted as voters intended.
• Most Harris supporters express confidence that absentee and mail-in ballots will be counted as intended by voters, but those who plan to vote absentee are more likely to say this than those who I intend to vote in person (93% vs. 80).

Among Harris and Trump supporters, confidence in the accuracy of counting votes cast in person does not vary by the voter’s intended voting method.