BY VEENA RAO
New 2026 IAAS poll shows widespread exposure to racist posts, strong disapproval of Trump’s first year back in office, and a Democratic edge that is narrowing as political ambivalence rises.
One year into President Donald Trump’s second term, Indian Americans report heightened online racism and harassment, while also expressing broad disapproval of the administration’s agenda on immigration and the economy, according to a new nationwide survey released Thursday by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
The 2026 Indian American Attitudes Survey (IAAS), conducted with YouGov, finds that online hate is now a routine part of the digital environment for many in the community. Nearly half of respondents—48 percent—said they have seen racist content targeting Indians or Indian Americans on social media “very” or “somewhat often” since the start of 2025. The emotional impact is pronounced: half said such content makes them angry, while about a third reported feeling anxious or fearful.
The survey also points to real-world spillover. Since the start of 2025, about one in four Indian Americans reported being called a slur. Smaller but notable shares reported being physically threatened (9 percent), receiving hate mail (8 percent), experiencing property damage (6 percent), or being physically assaulted (4 percent).
Against that backdrop, Indian Americans give Trump poor marks across multiple policy areas. Overall, 71 percent disapprove of Trump’s job performance, including 55 percent who strongly disapprove. Majorities also disapprove of his handling of immigration (64 percent), domestic economic policy (68 percent), and international economic policy such as trade and tariffs (70 percent).
On specific immigration actions associated with the second Trump administration, large majorities oppose the measures tested in the survey. The strongest opposition is to deporting immigrants to third countries—74 percent oppose that policy. About two-thirds oppose a proposed $100,000 fee on new H-1B petitions, an issue with particular resonance for Indian-origin immigrants.
Yet the report highlights a political paradox: widespread disapproval of Trump’s agenda has not translated into a simple or proportional consolidation behind Democrats.
Democrats still lead, but the edge is softening
Indian Americans remain disproportionately Democratic, the survey shows, but party identification has weakened over time. The share identifying as Democrats declined from 52 percent in 2020 to 46 percent in 2026. Republican identification rose modestly from 15 percent to 19 percent over the same period. Meanwhile, the share identifying as independents has grown, reaching 29 percent in 2026.
Ideologically, the community clusters near the center. Moderates make up the single largest group at 32 percent, followed by conservatives at 22 percent and liberals at 21 percent, with relatively small shares at the ideological extremes.
The survey’s “feeling thermometer” results suggest a broad cooling toward both parties and key political leaders. Indian Americans rated the Democratic Party at 53 out of 100, down from 60 in 2024, and the Republican Party at 34, down from 41. Ratings for Trump and Vice President JD Vance fell to 32 in 2026, while the rating for 2024 Democratic nominee Kamala Harris declined to 52.
Those trends appear to be reshaping the electoral picture. Asked how they would vote in a hypothetical rerun of the 2024 presidential election, 57 percent said they would support Harris, while 25 percent backed Trump. Third-party support doubled compared to 2024, rising to 10 percent, while 5 percent said they would not vote.
Notably, Trump’s support among younger Indian American men—an area where he made gains in 2024—appears to have dropped significantly. The share of young men supporting Trump fell from about 40 percent in 2024 to 24 percent in early 2026, the survey found.
Discrimination shapes daily life, but most aren’t leaving
Beyond online hate, about half of respondents said they experienced some form of personal discrimination since the start of 2025, with skin color (36 percent), country of origin (21 percent), and religion (17 percent) among the most frequently cited reasons. Caste-based discrimination was reported far less often (5 percent). Respondents most commonly reported discriminatory incidents in stores or malls (42 percent) and while applying for jobs (38 percent), followed by cultural or religious settings (31 percent).
Concerns about harassment are also changing behavior. Nearly one-third of respondents said they avoid discussing politics on social media due to fear of discrimination. About one in five said they have avoided traveling out of and re-entering the United States, refrained from displaying political signs, or avoided wearing Indian attire in public.
Even so, the survey suggests that anxiety about discrimination has not produced widespread plans to leave the country. Fourteen percent said they frequently think about leaving the United States, while 26 percent said they occasionally think about it. Those who have considered leaving most often cite frustration with U.S. politics (58 percent), cost of living (54 percent), and personal safety (41 percent). Among respondents contemplating emigration, only one in four said they would move to India; most named another country.
When asked to advise hypothetical immigrants weighing opportunities, respondents remained relatively bullish on the United States—especially for work. Sixty-two percent recommended applying for a U.S. work visa rather than staying in India, while 42 percent recommended the U.S. over the U.K. for graduate school.
U.S.–India relations: disapproval, but low salience
While the report notes that Trump’s policies have “pushed U.S.-India relations into a period of heightened turbulence,” the survey finds that foreign policy remains secondary for many Indian Americans. Only 20 percent approve of Trump’s handling of U.S.-India relations, while 55 percent disapprove. But a notable 25 percent said they have no opinion—suggesting the issue may not strongly shape voting behavior for many respondents.
Spotlight on identity politics
The survey also tested reactions to two high-profile political flashpoints. Indian Americans expressed substantial enthusiasm for the election of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, with 68 percent saying they were very or somewhat enthusiastic. The reasons, the survey suggests, were primarily ideological—supporters cite his progressive politics and youth, while critics often argue he is “too liberal,” with identity considerations playing a secondary role.
The survey also measured responses to widely discussed comments by Vice President JD Vance about religion and interfaith marriage. While respondents were divided on whether the remarks were “normal” for a religious person, large majorities said the statement raised concerns about religious inclusion and public representation. More than four in five said politicians should be careful when speaking publicly about a spouse’s religion, and about two-thirds rejected the idea that it is reasonable to expect one’s spouse to convert.
Methodology
The 2026 IAAS is a nationally representative online survey of 1,000 Indian American adults conducted by YouGov between Nov. 25, 2025, and Jan. 6, 2026, with an overall margin of error of ±3.6 percentage points. Unlike earlier waves, the 2026 survey explicitly incorporated multiracial respondents to better capture the growing population of mixed-race Indian Americans, a change the authors note warrants caution when comparing trends across years.
A community in flux
Overall, the Carnegie report portrays a community unsettled by a harsher political climate and high exposure to digital hostility, even as many still see the United States as a land of opportunity. Indian Americans remain Democratic-leaning, but party ties are loosening, ideological identity is drifting toward the center, and a growing slice of the electorate is expressing dissatisfaction with both major parties.
For policymakers and political strategists, the findings suggest that the Indian American electorate—often treated as reliably Democratic—may be entering a more fluid and contested era, shaped as much by pocketbook concerns and perceptions of belonging as by traditional partisan loyalty.
