If it's in the News, it's in our Polls. Public opinion polling since 2003.

POLITICS

Popularity of Black Lives Matter Jumps to 62%

The popularity of the Black Lives Matter movement has climbed dramatically after several days of protest following the police killing of an unarmed black man in Minneapolis.

A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds that 62% of Likely U.S. Voters now have a favorable opinion of Black Lives Matter, with 32% who share a Very Favorable one. This compares to 37% and 13% respectively the last time we asked this question four years ago.

Thirty-one percent (31%) still view the organization unfavorably, including 16% with a Very Unfavorable view. (To see survey question wording, click here.)

Forty-nine percent (49%) of blacks regard Black Lives Matter Very Favorably, compared to 28% of whites and 36% of other minority voters.

Thirty percent (30%) of all voters say they have a more favorable view of Black Lives Matter following the recent protests. Just as many (30%) view the group less favorably. The opinion of 38% is about the same.

(Want a free daily e-mail update? If it's in the news, it's in our polls). Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter or Facebook.

The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted June 3-4, 2020 by 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.

Black Lives Matter is calling for defunding police departments nationwide and channeling that money into more social services. But most voters are opposed to cutting their local police budget.

Those under 40 share a more favorable opinion of Black Lives Matter than their elders do, but voters in all age groups have reacted about the same to its performance in the recent protests.

Forty-six percent (46%) of blacks have a more favorable opinion of the movement now, a view shared by 26% of whites and 32% of other minority voters.

Democrats (49%) are far more likely to have a Very Favorable opinion of Black Lives Matter than Republicans (17%) and voters not affiliated with either major party (28%).

Forty-four percent (44%) of GOP Voters have a less favorable opinion after the recent protests. A plurality (46%) of Democrats has a more favorable view of the group, while 48% of unaffiliated voters feel about the same.

In a New York Daily News/Rasmussen Reports survey in late 2015, 52% of voters said Black Lives Matter was not interested in equal justice for all.

When asked five years ago which statement was closest to their own views, 78% said all lives matter, while 11% said black lives matter.

As recently as this past January, Americans were more optimistic about race relations in this country than they had been in years.

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

Please sign up for the Rasmussen Reports daily e-mail update (it's free) or follow us on Facebook. Let us keep you up to date with the latest public opinion news.

The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted June 3-4, 2020 by 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.

Rasmussen Reports is a media company specializing in the collection, publication and distribution of public opinion information.

We conduct public opinion polls on a variety of topics to inform our audience on events in the news and other topics of interest. To ensure editorial control and independence, we pay for the polls ourselves and generate revenue through the sale of subscriptions, sponsorships, and advertising. Nightly polling on politics, business and lifestyle topics provides the content to update the Rasmussen Reports web site many times each day. If it's in the news, it's in our polls. Additionally, the data drives a daily update newsletter and various media outlets across the country.

Some information, including the Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll and commentaries are available for free to the general public. Subscriptions are available for $4.95 a month or 34.95 a year that provide subscribers with exclusive access to more than 20 stories per week on upcoming elections, consumer confidence, and issues that affect us all. For those who are really into the numbers, Platinum Members can review demographic crosstabs and a full history of our data.

To learn more about our methodology, click here.