Republicans may not be as close to their Democratic friends as they think, poll finds

Republicans are more likely to be friendly with members of the opposition policy party than Democrats, according to an NBC News investigation released Friday morning.

The newly released poll found that more than eight in ten Republicans, or 82 percent, say they are “close” friends with at least one Democrat. Meanwhile, 64% of Democrats said they have at least one “close friend” who is a member of the opposite party, according to the survey. (RELATED: Record Number of Young Women Say They’re Done Being American: POLL)

The NBC News survey showed that 87% of respondents who called themselves “moderate” Republicans responded that they had a close Democratic friend, while 79% of Republican voters identifying as “conservative” said the same. Additionally, 78% of “moderate” Democrats said they have a close friend in the Republican Party, compared to just 57% of “liberal” Democrats, according to the poll.

Among voters identified as “core” Republican supporters, 77% said they have a close friend who is a Democrat, while 90% of “soft” GOP voters said the same, according to the survey. Additionally, 57% of “core” Democratic voters said they have a close friend in the opposite party, while 73% of “soft” Democrats responded the same way, according to the poll.

A Pew Research Center survey released July 23 found that 46% of Americans identify with or lean GOP, while 45% are affiliated with or lean Democratic. Men are now 12 percentage points more likely than women to be affiliated with the Republican Party, and women are 12 points more likely than men to be involved with the Democratic Party, according to the same survey.

Notably, there have been several instances of political violence in the United States this year, including the September 10 assassination of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk, as well as the assassination of Democratic Minnesota state Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband in June. The Department of Homeland Security reported in September that there had been a 1,000 percent increase in assaults against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.

Additionally, a Gallup poll released in October found that the vast The majority of American adults, 62%, believe there should be a third political party in the United States. while 30% responded that the Republican Party and Democratic Party “already do an adequate job of representing” Americans.

The NBC News poll surveyed 1,000 registered U.S. voters Oct. 24-28 using a mix of telephone interviews and an online survey sent via text message. The poll’s margin of error is plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.

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