Most Americans believe the country’s best days are behind it, according to new Pew Research Center findings released ahead of the United States’ 250th anniversary next year.
The survey found that 59% of Americans say the nation’s best years are behind us, while 40% believe the country’s best years are still ahead.
Pew researchers also found Americans are significantly more pessimistic than optimistic when thinking about the nation’s future over the next 50 years.
According to the survey, 44% of adults said they feel very or somewhat pessimistic about what the United States will look like in 2076, compared to 28% who described themselves as optimistic. Another 27% said they felt neither optimistic nor pessimistic.
The findings come from a Pew Research Center survey conducted in December 2025.
Researchers found pessimism crossed demographic and political lines, though the intensity varied among groups.
Majorities of Black, Hispanic, White and Asian adults all said the country’s best years have already passed. Lower- and middle-income Americans were also more likely to express that view, while upper-income respondents were evenly divided.
Political differences emerged in the survey as well.
About 64% of Democrats and Democratic-leaning voters said the country’s best years are behind it, compared with 53% of Republicans and Republican leaners.
When asked about the country’s future 50 years from now, half of Democrats described themselves as pessimistic, compared with 39% of Republicans.
Liberal Democrats expressed the bleakest outlook overall, with nearly two-thirds saying they felt pessimistic about the nation’s future.
Pew researchers noted that public views on America’s trajectory often shift depending on which political party controls the White House and Congress.
The survey is part of a broader series of studies examining Americans’ views of democracy, political institutions and national identity ahead of the nation’s semiquincentennial celebration in 2026.
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