Polls show a near 15% drop in the share of Americans calling crime a 'very' serious problem in 2025

Misleading

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Public-opinion poll results (e.g., Gallup or the cited poll) confirm a ~15% decline in the share of respondents rating crime as a 'very' serious issue in 2025 versus the prior reference period.

Source summary
A White House article published January 8, 2026, criticizes Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and argues that President Trump’s immigration enforcement policies have reduced crime, deported large numbers of noncitizens with criminal records, lowered fentanyl trafficking and overdose deaths, and eased pressure on emergency services. The piece cites statistics and operations—including a reported large decline in 2025 homicides, the deportation of 650,000+ noncitizens, and agency enforcement actions—to support its claims.
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Gallup’s October 2025 crime survey found that 49% of Americans described crime in the U.S. as an “extremely” or “very” serious problem, down from 56% in 2024 – a decline of 7 percentage points. In the same poll, the share saying crime had increased in the past year fell from 64% to 49%, a 15‑point drop. Gallup explicitly notes these two readings are “down seven and 15 percentage points, respectively,” meaning the 15‑point figure applies to perceptions that crime is increasing, not to viewing crime as a very/extremely serious problem. Thus, the statement conflates the 15‑point drop in perceived crime increases with the smaller 7‑point drop in viewing crime as a very/extremely serious issue. The verdict is Misleading because it loosely references real polling data but misattributes the 15‑point decline to the wrong measure, overstating the change in how serious Americans perceive crime to be.

Timeline

  1. Update · Jan 09, 2026, 08:21 AMMisleading
    Gallup’s October 2025 crime survey found that 49% of Americans described crime in the U.S. as an “extremely” or “very” serious problem, down from 56% in 2024 – a decline of 7 percentage points. In the same poll, the share saying crime had increased in the past year fell from 64% to 49%, a 15‑point drop. Gallup explicitly notes these two readings are “down seven and 15 percentage points, respectively,” meaning the 15‑point figure applies to perceptions that crime is increasing, not to viewing crime as a very/extremely serious problem. Thus, the statement conflates the 15‑point drop in perceived crime increases with the smaller 7‑point drop in viewing crime as a very/extremely serious issue. The verdict is Misleading because it loosely references real polling data but misattributes the 15‑point decline to the wrong measure, overstating the change in how serious Americans perceive crime to be.
  2. Original article · Jan 08, 2026

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