By Bruno Manno
Looking back on the past 40 years, many working-class Americans are justifiably glum about their economic position in the country.
According to opinion research conducted with working-class Americans (defined as those without a college degree) over the past year for the Progressive Policy Institute’s Project on Center Left Renewal, two out of three believe the working class is worse off today than it was four decades ago while only one in five believe the working class is better off. Despite overall displeasure, working-class Americans do retain hope for the future and look specifically to improved educational opportunities as a possible pathway to economic mobility for their children and themselves.
However, this research finds working-class voters divided on which political party will actually advance their educational and economic interests.