Poll: Majority of Americans Fearful of Future

Americans’ prognosis for their own futures is the worst it’s been in more than 10 years, according to a Washington Post-ABC News poll.

A slim majority of 53 percent of Americans feel hopeful about their lives in 2013, while 44 percent are fearful. In 2008, shortly after the first election of President Barack Obama, 63 percent of respondents were hopeful. And six years ago, almost 75 percent were hopeful.

Republicans are particularly gloomy about their future, with 72 percent fearful, compared to a paltry 20 percent in 2006, when George W. Bush was president. In 2008, 44 percent of Republicans were hopeful, and 54 percent felt fear.

Among Democrats, 75 percent are optimistic about their lives next year, unchanged from 2008.

Republicans and Democrats also are split in their views of the economy. More than 70 percent of Democrats say the economy is beginning to recover, compared to only 35 percent of Republicans.

Meanwhile, Americans’ outlook for the world as a whole isn’t promising. A total of 40 percent are hopeful for the world, while 56 percent are fearful.