A poll of the US residents performed by the Pew Research Center has revealed that although the fraction of US citizens who reject the uncontroversial idea (in the science community) of evolution remains consistent, a greater number of Republicans reject this idea than in the past. This shows the growing political separation over the idea of evolution.
US residents were questioned on whether they believe that humans and all living organisms existed in their present form since the beginning of life, or if humans evolved over time. The mentioning of other animals was also included to increase the objectiveness of this poll, although this did not affect the poll results. As expected, those who had graduated college (educated) and of the younger generations accepted the theory of evolution more than those who are excluded from the two categories. Of the 60% of US residents that do accept this theory, some believed that deities and gods have guided the process, while others were sure that evolution was just a result of lucky but random mutation.
The majority of Democrats and independents (two-thirds) accept this theory, while the percentage of Republicans that believe in evolution dropped from 54% to 43% since 2009, a brief period of time. Most of the explanations for this divide have been based upon the Grand Old Party’s debate on ideological purity. This could have caused members of the GOP to reinforce ties with their fellow Republicans, while driving away members who have begun to differ from other members of their party. The true cause of this shift is still difficult to resolve.
