The Biggest Public Reaction To The Election Is Surprise

Posted on the 13 November 2016 by Jobsanger


These charts are from a Gallup Poll done on November 9th of a random national sample of 511 adults, with a 5 point margin of error. It was taken to gauge the reactions of the public to the outcome of the 2016 presidential election.
The biggest reaction was surprise. About 75% (3 out of 4 Americans) said they were surprised by the outcome -- and that includes significant majorities of both Clinton (88%) and Trump (62%) voters.
The second biggest reaction was fear. About 42% of the public (more than 4 out of 10) said they were made afraid by the outcome.
The bottom chart compares the 2016 reactions to those of 2008 and 2012. Note that the 2016 number that was afraid was larger than that of 2012 (36%) or 2008 (27%). It is just the opposite for those saying they were proud or excited. In 2008, 67% said they were proud and in 2012 about 48% said that. In 2016, only 32% said they were proud. In 2008, 59% were excited and in 2012 40% said that. In 2016, that figure dropped to 35%.