# Most Americans don't mind if close friends belong to a different party

Canonical page: https://data.verasight.io/politics/most-americans-dont-mind-if-close-friends-belong-to-a-different-party/

> Indexed question in Politics.

## Reading

Most Americans (57%) say they don't mind when people they're close to belong to a different political party, and nearly as many (54%) say the same about people outside their inner circle, a May 2026 Verasight survey finds.

That tolerance has limits, though: 30% say they have unfollowed or unfriended someone on social media because they do not agree politically, and smaller shares have pulled back from a friend (23%), a family member (20%), or a romantic partner (8%) over political differences, while 11% have ended a relationship entirely. Just 13% say none of these apply to them.

## Topline

Please select all that apply to you

Most Americans don't mind if close friends belong to a different party.

Respondents could select more than one option, so shares may sum to more than 100%.

- I don't mind if people who I'm close to belong to a different political party: 57.4%
- I don't mind if people who are not in my inner circle belong to a different political party: 54.0%
- I have unfollowed or unfriended someone I know on social media because we do not agree politically: 29.6%
- I have avoided or stopped speaking as much to a friend over our political differences: 22.7%
- I have avoided or stopped speaking as much to a family member over our political differences: 20.1%
- None of the above: 13.5%
- I have ended a relationship with someone in my life because we have different political views: 11.2%
- I have avoided or stopped speaking as much to a romantic partner over our political differences: 8.0%

## Methodology

- Mode: Verasight panel recruited via random address-based sampling, random person-to-person text messaging, and dynamic online targeting
- Population: US adults age 18+
- Field dates: 2026-05-11 → 2026-05-11
- Base (unweighted): 1,000
- Margin of error: +/- 3.3%
- Module: politics
- Sponsor: Verasight
- Weight variable: weight
- Weighting targets: age, race/ethnicity, sex, income, education, region, metropolitan status

## Source

- Canonical question URL: [https://reports.verasight.io/r/spsp26#q-4.27](https://reports.verasight.io/r/spsp26#q-4.27)

## Citation

Verasight SPSP Omnibus Survey #2026-045, fielded May 11-11, 2026, N=1,000 US adults age 18+, +/- 3.3%.

Canonical question URL: [https://reports.verasight.io/r/spsp26#q-4.27](https://reports.verasight.io/r/spsp26#q-4.27)