Many Democrats are still down on the Democratic Party, a new AP-NORC poll finds

WASHINGTON (AP) — Democratic candidates have notched a series of wins in recent special elections — but a new AP-NORC poll finds views of the Democratic Party among rank-and-file Democrats have not bounced back since President Donald Trump’s victory in 2024.

Only about 7 in 10 Democrats have a positive view of the Democratic Party, according to new polling from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. While the overwhelming majority of Democrats still feel good about their party, they're much less positive than they've been in the past.

The midterm elections are still many months away, and lackluster favorability doesn't spell electoral doom. Other factors could benefit Democrats this year, including broadly negative views of Trump and other Republicans. Additionally, recent polling has found that independents tend to identify more with the party that’s out of power, which could boost Democrats this year too. Historically, the party not in the White House has picked up seats in Congress in midterm elections.

But the lack of enthusiasm could be a longer-term problem for the party. Democrats' favorability of their party plummeted after the 2024 election, from 85% in September 2024 to 67% in October 2025. And despite overwhelming victories in November’s off-season elections and a string of wins since then, those views haven’t recovered. Other polling indicates that Democrats are deeply frustrated with their party.

At the same time, there's some potential good news for Democrats in the new poll. Although Republicans are slightly more enthusiastic about their own party, Americans in general don't think highly of either party. Health care is on many Americans' minds this year, and it's an issue where Democrats have a large advantage, according to the survey. Meanwhile, Republicans have lost some ground on two of Trump's signature issues, the economy and immigration, although Americans don't necessarily trust Democrats more on those issues as a result.

Other polling suggests that Democrats' post-2024 slump is unusually large.

In Gallup’s measure of favorability, Democrats’ positive views of their own party declined about 12 percentage points in the last year. That marked the lowest measure in that question’s history, which dates back to 2001. Notably, Democrats did not see a similar decline after their first loss to Trump in 2016.

That diminished view of the Democratic Party in the AP-NORC polling is consistent regardless of Democrats' age, race, ideology or educational background — suggesting that appealing to a specific group or two won't fix the problem.

A separate survey from the Pew Research Center last fall found roughly two-thirds of Democrats in September said their own party made them “frustrated” compared to just 4 in 10 Republicans.

Among those frustrated Democrats, about 4 in 10 felt their party was not fighting hard enough against Trump while about 1 in 10 said there was a lack of good leadership or a cohesive agenda.

It's not just Democrats — Americans aren't thrilled with either party right now.

Roughly one-quarter of Americans have a negative view of both the Democratic Party and the Republican Party, according to the AP-NORC data. That double-negativity is especially sharp among independents and Americans under 45.

About half of U.S. adults only view one party positively, and only about 1 in 10 feel good about both parties.

But Democrats' loss of goodwill is more recent. Polling over the last 25 years from Gallup shows that Americans used to feel much more positively toward the Democrats. Around 2010, public sentiment turned against the Democrats. Since then, at least half of Americans have held unfavorable views of the party, according to Gallup.

Negative views of the Democrats now rival the most negative points in time for the Republicans.

With health care at the top of Americans' priority lists as costs and premiums rise, Democrats have a possible advantage going into the midterm year.

About one-third of U.S. adults — 35% — trust the Democrats to do a better job handling health care, compared to 23% for the Republicans. That is broadly in line with the last time the question was asked in October 2025.

At the same time, Republicans have lost some ground on the issues that were key to Trump’s reelection — the economy and immigration. But Democrats haven’t managed to capitalize on it. Only about 3 in 10 U.S. adults, 31%, say Republicans are the party they trust to handle the economy, down slightly from 36% last year. But Democrats haven’t made any gains on this issue; rather, slightly more Americans now say they trust “neither” party to handle the economy.

Neither party has an edge on who is better equipped to manage the cost of living, which was first asked in the most recent poll.

Republicans are also down slightly on handling immigration. Only about one-third of U.S. adults trust them to better handle immigration, an apparent decrease from 39% in October. Democrats didn't appear to benefit from that shift either.

The AP-NORC poll of 1,156 adults was conducted Feb. 5-8 using a sample drawn from NORC’s probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for adults overall is plus or minus 3.9 percentage points. The margin of sampling error for Democrats overall is plus or minus 6.0 percentage points.

FILE - People stand outside the Democratic National Committee headquarters in Washington, June 14, 2016. (AP Photo/Paul Holston, File)

FILE - A podium is prepared before Democrats hold news conference on the health care funding fight on the steps of the House before votes to end the government shutdown on Capitol Hill, Nov. 12, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib, File)

FILE - Part of the stage with the DNC logo is seen at the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson, File)

FILE - Birds fly near the U.S. Capitol during sunrise, Feb. 13, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Tom Brenner, File)

MADRID (AP) — Benfica player Gianluca Prestianni has denied racially insulting Real Madrid forward Vinícius Júnior during a Champions League match when he covered his mouth with his jersey.

“I have never been racist with anyone and I regret the threats that I received from Real Madrid players,” the 20-year-old Argentina forward, who faces a potential 10-match ban if found guilty of racial abuse in UEFA’s disciplinary code, said on X. The European soccer governing body said Wednesday it has appointed a special investigator to gather evidence.

Benfica said Prestianni was the victim of a “defamation campaign.”

The Champions League playoff game at Benfica’s Stadium of Light was halted for nearly 10 minutes on Tuesday after the referee initiated the anti-racism protocol, which is the standard procedure when a player alleges being abused. Cameras picked up Vinícius telling French referee François Letexier that Prestianni called him a “monkey.”

Benfica showed support for Prestianni on Wednesday, with the Portuguese club claiming that Madrid players who said they heard the insult were too far away.

Benfica later released a statement saying it welcomed UEFA's investigation and that it “fully supports and believes the version presented” by Prestianni, "whose conduct while with the club has always been guided by respect” toward everyone.

Benfica fans had reacted angrily to Vinícius celebrating his 50th-minute goal by dancing by the corner flag, throwing bottles and other objects toward the Madrid players. Prestianni then confronted Vinícius and said something while covering his mouth with his jersey.

Madrid, which won 1-0, hosts the second leg on Feb. 25 with the overall winner advancing to the round of 16 in European club soccer's top competition.

After the match, Vinícius posted a photo on Instagram of him celebrating by the Benfica corner flag. He wrote: “Racists are, above all, cowards. They need to cover their mouths with their shirts to show how they are weak. ... Nothing that happened today is new to me in my life and in my family’s life. I was shown a yellow card for celebrating a goal. I still don’t know why.”

Madrid players said they considered leaving the field but eventually decided to continue playing.

Vinícius covered his mouth with his hands several times, as many players do, while talking to teammates and opponents.

Benfica posted a video on X.

“As the images show, given the distance, the Real Madrid players couldn't have heard what they have been saying that they heard,” Benfica said.

Benfica had already posted Prestianni's statement along with the words: “Together, by your side.”

Prestianni insisted that Vinícius misunderstood what was said, while Benfica players after the match reportedly said the Argentine provoked the Brazil forward but never racially insulted him.

“I want to clarify that at no time did I direct racist insults at the player Vinícius Júnior, who unfortunately misinterpreted what he thought he had heard,” Prestianni said.

He did not say why he covered his mouth.

The referee appeared to show that he did not hear anything and gestured that Prestianni had the shirt over his mouth. Vinícius, who is Black and has been repeatedly subjected to racist abuse in Spain, went to the sideline and sat in the dugout while play was stopped.

Prestianni was not shown a yellow card and continued playing. He was substituted in the 81st and was applauded by Benfica fans.

Kylian Mbappé was among the Madrid players who strongly defended Vinícius and posted on X: "Dance, Vini, and please never stop. They will never tell us what we have to do or not."

The France great also said Prestianni should never play in the Champions League again.

Some online videos on Wednesday appeared to show a few Benfica fans doing monkey gestures from the stands.

Benfica coach José Mourinho criticized Vinícius for celebrating by the Benfica flag. He spoke with both players and said he did not want to say he believed one over the other.

Mourinho said he told Vinícius that the greatest player in Benfica’s history — Eusébio — was also Black, but seemed to question why the Madrid player was so frequently targeted by racist abuse.

Anti-discrimination group Kick It Out criticized Mourinho's remarks.

“When anyone reports discrimination in football, or anywhere, the first priority is that they are listened to and feel supported," it said.

“Focusing on Vinicius Jr.’s goal celebration or the history of the club, instead of acknowledging the report, is a form of gaslighting.

“This approach not only harms the individual affected but also sends the wrong message to others around the world who may have experienced similar situations."

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Real Madrid's Vinicius Junior argues with referee François Letexier after scoring the opening goal during a Champions League playoff soccer match between SL Benfica and Real Madrid in Lisbon, Portugal, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Pedro Rocha)

Real Madrid's Vinicius Junior celebrates with team mates the opening goal during a Champions League playoff soccer match between SL Benfica and Real Madrid in Lisbon, Portugal, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Pedro Rocha)

A plastic bottle filled with water is thrown from the stands toward Real Madrid's Vinícius Júnior during a Champions League playoff soccer match between Benfica and Real Madrid in Lisbon, Portugal, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Pedro Rocha)

Real Madrid's Vinicius Junior argues with Benfica's head coach José Mourinho after scoring the opening goal during a Champions League playoff soccer match between SL Benfica and Real Madrid in Lisbon, Portugal, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Pedro Rocha)

Benfica's Gianluca Prestianni fights for the ball against Real Madrid's Vinicius Junior during a Champions League playoff soccer match between SL Benfica and Real Madrid in Lisbon, Portugal, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Pedro Rocha)