58% of People are Keeping a Close Eye on the Presidential Election, According to Pew Poll

According to the latest Pew Research Center survey, more Americans are closely following the presidential election compared to four years ago. Many respondents are already feeling worn out by the media’s coverage of the expected race between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump.

58% of the respondents say they are closely following news about the presidential candidates, while 28% are not following too closely, and 13% are not following at all. In April 2020, 52% said they were following election news closely, which increased to 75% in October 2020.

Republicans and GOP-leaning independents (64%) are slightly more likely than Democrats and Democrat leaners (58%) to say they are closely following election news this year.

The Pew Research Center survey also revealed that 62% of respondents are already worn out by the extensive coverage of the campaign and candidates. In the past two presidential election years, a similar percentage of people felt worn out in June and July 2016 (59%) and October 2020 (61%).

Republicans (58%) are slightly less likely than Democrats (66%) to feel worn out by election coverage, with conservative Republicans (55%) showing lower fatigue levels than moderate or liberal Republicans (65%).

The survey found that Americans who closely follow election news are less likely to be worn out by the coverage. 4 in 10 people who follow election news very closely feel worn out, compared to 77% of those who do not follow it closely at all.

Regarding how Americans get their election news, 57% happen to come across it, while 42% actively look for it. Only a quarter of Americans aged 18 to 29 mostly seek political news, compared to 60% of those 65 and older.

The Pew Research Survey was conducted from April 8-14 among 8,709 U.S. adults.