POLL: Only 7.4 percent of incoming Harvard students are conservative
The number of self-identified Republicans entering Harvard halved in a single year, dropping from over 10 percent to roughly 5 percent.
The incoming freshman class at Harvard University is overwhelmingly left-leaning.
The Harvard Crimson — Harvard University’s student newspaper — published the results of its annual freshman survey, which revealed significant declines in conservatism among its incoming students.
The Crimson surveyed over 76 percent of the Harvard College Class of 2024, asking them about their beliefs, lifestyle, and habits.
Harvard’s new freshmen are overwhelmingly left-leaning: 72.4 percent self-identify as either “very liberal” or “somewhat liberal,” while only 7.4 percent self-identify as “very conservative” or “somewhat conservative.” Meanwhile, 20.3 percent self-identify as “moderate.”
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Likewise, 80.7 percent of freshmen have a“strongly unfavorable” opinion of President Donald Trump. Another 8.2 percent view the president “somewhat” unfavorably. Only 4.7 percent view Trump either “somewhat” or “strongly” favorable.
The number of self-identified Republicans among Harvard freshmen halved in a single year. In the class of 2023, 12.4 percent identified as “somewhat conservative” or “very conservative.”
On the issue of defunding or abolishing police departments, over 60 percent support the movement. However, when it came to abolishing the Harvard University Police Department, just 29.3 percent were in favor.
Over 80 percent strongly favor mandatory mask mandates, while only 3 percent explicitly oppose mandatory mask policies.
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Opinions toward the notion of free speech were mixed.
Slightly over one-quarter of freshmen said they are “concerned” or “very concerned” about freedom of speech, while nearly 30 percent are “unconcerned” or “very unconcerned.” The most common response to this question was “neither concerned or unconcerned,” representing 30.5 percent of students.
Harvard University is one of the most prestigious post-secondary institutions in the world, having produced eight U.S. presidents, as well as countless business leaders, government officials, and pop culture icons.
Harvard is currently ranked in second place among American universities.
Follow the author of this article on Twitter: @BenZeisloft
