Voters Still Cling to Free Speech, But Younger Voters Not So Sure

Just over half of voters still believe in protecting the things we say from government control, but those under 40 are more willing to sacrifice free speech than their elders.

A new Heartland Institute and Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds that 56% of Likely U.S. Voters are opposed to federal or state governments banning speech by individuals that a majority of Americans believe to be offensive including speech on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. Twenty-six percent (26%) favor a ban on such speech, while 18% are undecided. (To see survey question wording, click here.)

Similarly, 55% do not believe that those who violate such bans against offensive speech should be punished with jail time. Twenty-three percent (23%) disagree and favor jail sentences for those who violate speech codes, with another 21% not sure.

However, a closer look finds that 37% of those under 40 favor a government ban on speech that others find offensive, compared to roughly 20% of older voters. Thirty-two percent (32%) of younger voters think offenders should face jail time, a view shared by just 19% of those 40 and over.

In a survey a year ago with similar questions, 38% of all voters said those who say things a majority of Americans find offensive, including speech considered racist or sexist, should be banned from public office. Forty-four percent (44%) disagreed, but 18% were undecided.

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The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted December 6-7, 2020 by the Heartland Institute and Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

The incoming Biden administration is reportedly flirting with the idea of joining the so-called Great Reset, an international effort to radically change world economies with much bigger government and far greater regulation. Democrats and younger voters welcome the international involvement in U.S. policymaking; other voters are not so sure.

Democrats (34%) are more enthusiastic about a government ban on free speech that includes social media sites than Republicans (22%) and voters not affiliated with either major party (22%) are. While 58% of Republicans and 62% of unaffiliateds oppose jail time for offenders, only 48% of Democrats agree.

Whites are less supportive of free speech restrictions and jail sentences for offenders than blacks and other minority voters.

Men are bigger supporters of both than women are.

Sixty-five percent (65%) of all Americans agree that they have to be careful not to say something politically incorrect to avoid getting in trouble.

How do voters define political correctness? For 37%, it protects groups that have historically been discriminated against. But a plurality (47%) says political correctness is a tool used to silence political and social opponents. Seventeen percent (17%) are undecided.

Additional information from this survey and a full demographic breakdown are available to Platinum Members only.

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