Mounting worries over gun violence and political extremism are prompting more U.S. citizens to weigh emigration, a Gallup poll and fresh expatriate accounts suggest.
Roughly one in five Americans would move abroad permanently if they could, according to a November 2025 Gallup survey. Two of those who already have, both now residents of Lisbon, Portugal, told China Global Television Network that safety was a deciding factor.
Tara Milo, who left Ohio several years ago, said the constant anxiety she felt back home evaporated once she relocated.
"There's just a culture of fear there that you should be afraid of somebody doing something to you. I feel like we're encouraged to be afraid of each other. And I don't like that. Also, my ex-husband is a school teacher. Year after year there's shootings and it's like, when is it going to be his school and what's going to happen. And that's a terrible feeling. It's really scary and there's not that fear here. It just doesn't exist," Milo said.
"And that's something that I really love doing here. I love my alone time, and I can walk around the city at night texting with earbuds in, like I'm just not paying attention and it's so safe. And I don't feel that in the U.S., like we're trained to put our keys between our fingers as we walk so we're ready for anything. And there's just a million things that women especially have to do to stay on our toes. And I don't have that here. I got to let go of all of it. It takes a while to adjust and to let that guard down and just live. But when you do, it's really amazing," she added.
Earl Wagner moved from Houston to Lisbon a year ago, citing escalating right-wing radicalization and easy access to guns.
"I moved to Lisbon, Portugal about a year ago. Being in Houston, Texas, it's pretty red state and a lot of people started to become more and more extremist around the area. Previously, I did IT work and some software development for some oil and gas companies and a lot of the workers there were very, very right wing, and regularly carry guns on them and always were talking with each other about how they got this gun and that gun and it was so common. I've actually also, back in the States, I've had guns pulled out on me," said Wagner.
Americans cite safety as major reason to move abroad
