If a nation’s strength lies in the confidence of its people, then America might be staring down the barrel of something far more dangerous than external threats: internal collapse.
A new YouGov poll has dropped a political bombshell—nearly half of American adults now believe the United States will lose its status as a global superpower within the next ten years. Not decades. Not generations. Ten years.
Let that sink in.
Out of 1,111 adults surveyed in June, 21% said it’s very likely the U.S. will see a sharp decline on the world stage in the next decade. Another 24% said it’s somewhat likely. That’s nearly half the country looking ahead and seeing a sunset, not a shining city on a hill.
And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
The poll paints a bleak—and frankly, explosive—picture of the American psyche right now. Forty-five percent said they believe an economic collapse is on the table. Forty percent think we could see a civil war. Yes, a civil war. And no, that’s not hyperbole—it’s what respondents actually said.
Equally disturbing:
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38% think democracy may not survive the decade.
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31% believe the U.S. could morph into a fascist dictatorship.
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20% foresee a communist regime.
This isn’t just political pessimism. It’s existential dread.
And while the numbers differ by party, the disillusionment crosses ideological lines. Sure, 69% of Republicans think the political system is working "somewhat well," compared to just 26% of Democrats. But only 43% of all respondents—less than half—think the U.S. political machine is functioning at even a passable level.
The rest? They see a system that's broken, bleeding, and possibly beyond repair.
Take the statistic that 56% believe the country is in a constitutional crisis. That’s more than half the nation saying the foundational framework of the republic is under threat. Among Democrats, that number soars to a staggering 82%. Even a quarter of Republicans agree.
Fear is everywhere, but it takes different forms. Nearly half of Democrats (47%) say they’re “very scared” about where the world is headed. Only 10% of Republicans feel the same. Independents split the difference at 30%.
And while media, politicians, and Silicon Valley keep pointing fingers at Russia, China, or AI, Americans are looking inward—and not liking what they see. Sixty-seven percent said the U.S. is experiencing more political violence and misinformation than it did a decade ago. At least half believe America has it worse than other democracies when it comes to those problems.
This isn’t a survey. It’s a siren.
Because when millions of people in the world’s most powerful country start expecting civil war, dictatorship, and economic freefall—all within their own lifetimes—something’s gone terribly wrong.
And the scariest part?
There’s no plan, no blueprint, no unifying figure ready to stitch this unraveling republic back together.
The empire, it seems, is starting to doubt itself.
And history has a name for moments like this.
They call it the tipping point.
