Political Issues

Survey Report As immigration emerges as a key issue in the presidential campaign, there is little common ground between Republicans and Democrats in views of several immigration policy proposals. But partisan disagreements are much more pronounced on some issues than others. Overall, the public continues to be divided over building a fence along the entire […]

The regulation of abortion may vary widely from country to country, but nearly all nations – 96% – allow women to terminate their pregnancies in order to save their lives.

Two-thirds of Americans say doctors should be allowed by law to assist patients who are terminally ill and living in severe pain to commit suicide.

About half of Republicans (53%) say immigrants coming to the U.S. make society worse in the long run, compared with just 24% of Democrats who say the same.

Survey Report The public has mixed reactions to the U.S. response to the influx of hundreds of thousands of migrants arriving in Europe in recent weeks. By a narrow 51%-45% margin, more approve than disapprove of the U.S. decision to increase the number of refugees it accepts to help deal with this situation. When asked […]

Survey Report With the prospect of a government shutdown apparently decreasing, the public by a wide margin says that any congressional budget agreement must maintain funding for Planned Parenthood. The latest national poll by the Pew Research Center, conducted Sept. 22-27 among 1,502 adults, finds that 60% say that any budget deal must maintain funding for […]

Almost nine-in-ten U.S. Catholics believe that some actions are offensive to God, but many American Catholics don't agree with church teachings on what constitutes sinful behavior.

Pope Francis has urged European Catholics to take in some of the thousands of migrants streaming in from Syria and other countries amid the world’s largest refugee crisis on record, and in his address to Congress today he urged leaders to welcome and respect immigrants coming to the U.S. But just how closely public opinion aligns with the pope’s […]

Although Europe is struggling to manage the hundreds of thousands of refugees fleeing conflicts in the Middle East, Africa and elsewhere, the countries facing the biggest refugee impacts are the ones closest to the fighting.

Most people in China say they are better off financially than they were five years ago. At the same time, they're worried about corrupt officials, air and water pollution, crime and economic inequality.