As President Donald Trump continues to deploy federal troops for his crackdown on crime, fewer Americans believe crime is a serious issue. A new Gallup poll released this week showed that the number is the lowest since 2018.
The telephone survey of 1,000 U.S. adults, conducted Oct. 1 to 16, found that fewer than half of respondents consider crime to be serious. Thirty-two percent said they think crime is a “very” serious issue, down by 15 points from last year. Another 17% said they believed crime is an “extremely” serious issue, a seven-point decrease from 2024.
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According to The Hill, crime concerns reached their peak in 2023, when 63% of survey respondents said they believed crime was a serious issue. Sixty percent or more expressed this view three other times: in 2000, 2010 and 2016.
Crime concerns ranked lowest in 2004, when 42% said it was a serious issue.
Is crime getting better?
Violent crime has steadily declined in the United States since the 1990s, with a notable spike early this decade during the COVID-19 pandemic. Last year, the FBI estimates, there were 359.1 violent crimes per 100,000 people, a 5.4% decrease from 2023.
In 2024, murder declined by 15.8%, robbery dropped by 9.7% and property crimes fell by 9%. Data also showed that rape crimes dropped by an estimated 5.2% from 2023 to 2024.
Despite the crime reports and the survey results, Trump has pursued a crackdown on crime, deploying federal agents and the National Guard to patrol streets in Washington and other major U.S. cities to fight crime.
The Trump administration said the plan is working and cited lower violent crimes in Washington following the federal takeover. But others have questioned the legality of assigning federal troops for law enforcement.
