Republicans listen to wealthy donors, Democrats listen to lobbyists and interest groups

Who registered voters think party leaders listen to most when deciding which policies to support. Respondents could select up to three.

Paired-dot chart comparing perceptions of whom Democratic and Republican leaders listen to. Democratic/Republican percentages: Donald Trump 3/65; business leaders 14/31; wealthy campaign donors 41/54; experts 19/12; people like me 24/17; the media 17/5; lobbyists and interest groups 48/35; labor unions 25/3; party activists 38/10; none of these 9/7.

(Please use a modern browser to see the interactive version of this visualization)

The Argument's survey of 1,549 registered voters, with 1,501 complete interviews and 48 partial interviews, was fielded nationally between Oct. 21 and 23, 2026. The margin of error for the full survey is ±2.6%. Multiple selections allowed, so percentages do not sum to 100.

Chart: Jerusalem Demsas/The ArgumentSource: The Argument/VerasightEmbed