2014 Post-Election American Values Survey: What Motivated Voters During the Midterm Elections?

The post-election American Values Survey (AVS) of more than 1,500 Americans, conducted by Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) in the days following the midterm elections, is a unique panel survey based on re-contacting respondents from PRRI’s pre-election AVS. The survey asks Americans about ballot choices, motivations for voting, views of the two major political parties, priorities and challenges for President Obama and members of Congress, concerns about campaign negativity and voting problems, and the public appetite for compromise moving forward.

On November 12, Governance Studies at Brookings and PRRI hosted the PRRI’s fifth annual post-election AVS survey release featuring a panel of experts to discuss Americans’ views about the election. Additional topics covered by the survey are how Americans feel about the fairness of the criminal justice system following the tension in Ferguson, the threat of terrorism, and the government response to the recent Ebola outbreak.