Nationscape

A comprehensive view of the American electorate

Democracy Fund + UCLA Nationscape is one of the largest public opinion surveys ever conducted — interviewing people in nearly every county, congressional district, and mid-sized U.S. city in the leadup to the 2020 election. Nationscape is fielded by Lucid.

Conducting more than 500,000 interviews over 16 months, the survey sheds light on attitudes and issues as they take shape. Nationscape is designed to answer the questions most urgent to American democracy across multiple dimensions.

Get the Latest Nationscape Data

A bold endeavor, a deeper look

Nationscape captures a nuanced picture of the American electorate. With it, researchers can explore the dynamics and intensity of preferences — in light of critical factors like partisanship, tribalism, and polarization. The aim is to understand voter choices, inform political discourse, and improve political representation across the country.

Nationscape is a featured project of Democracy Fund Voter Study Group in partnership with UCLA political scientists Lynn Vavreck and Chris Tausanovitch. It is fielded by Lucid, a leading market research platform.

Meet the Researchers

From Nationscape

Data

Updates on How Americans Plan to Vote

A new tracker using Democracy Fund + UCLA Nationscape survey data provides weekly updates on which voting methods Americans’ plan to use to make their voices heard in the 2020 Election.

Data

Tracking American Perspectives on the Pandemic

Democracy Fund + UCLA Nationscape survey offers weekly data on Americans’ attitudes about the outbreak — from presidential approval to support for social distancing restrictions — as events unfold.

Announcement

Swing State Views on Voting Methods, Candidate Empathy

In a video by USA TODAY, Democracy Fund + UCLA Nationscape data reveal voter perspectives in Pennsylvania, Arizona, and Georgia.

DATA

New: Nationscape Releases Second Data Set

The latest Democracy Fund + UCLA Nationscape data set is now available to the public. This Phase 2 release includes waves from January to July 2020 and reflects Americans' views on more than 40 policies.

Download the Data

Interactive Data

Nationscape Insights Dashboard Launches in Partnership with USA TODAY

Now researchers, reporters, and armchair pundits have immediate access to America’s diverse views on 40 top policy issues. “Nationscape Insights” is an interactive dashboard launched in partnership with USA TODAY. It’s updated with weekly survey findings from Democracy Fund + UCLA Nationscape. Explore trends, sort by location and demographics, and understand perspectives not well represented in most national polls.

Visit Nationscape Insights

Report

Symptoms Vary

Relative to earlier outbreaks of the Ebola and Zika viruses, Americans are more concerned about COVID-19 and more dissatisfied with the government's response. Cindy Kam and John Sides analyze the latest Nationscape data to better understand the differences in public response, and how partisanship affects those differences.

Blog

Understanding Biden’s Steady Lead with Seniors

John Sides and Robert Griffin of Voter Study Group examine the presidential preferences of older voters before and after the coronavirus outbreak in this Monkey Cage piece for The Washington Post.