MEADVILLE, Pa., Sept. 28 (UPI) -- Most Americans agree the tone of political discourse has worsened since Barack Obama was elected president, a U.S. survey indicates.
The survey -- commissioned by Allegheny College in Meadville, Pa., in partnership with Indiana University -- Purdue University Fort Wayne, Ind., -- says 58 percent think political civility has gotten worse since the 2008 election, an increase of 10 percent since April.
The survey indicates 41 percent of Americans say the tone of campaigns this year is worse than in previous elections, 9 percent say it are more positive than in the past, and 49 percent said things are about the same.
Sixty-one percent say the tone of campaigning this year "hurts our democracy," while 19 percent say it was "healthy for our democracy."
"The only thing Republicans, Democrats and independents seemed to agree on is their general dislike of political incivility and the feeling that campaigns are hurting democracy," Michael Wolf, associate professor of political science at Indiana University -- Purdue University Fort Wayne, says in a statement. "When we asked who is responsible for incivility, partisans point at the other sides' commentators and independents blame political parties. It's an endless loop."
The survey of 1,242 randomly selected registered voters, conducted by SurveyUSA Sept. 13-16, has a margin of error of 3 percentage points.
