Pew Poll: 40 Percent Say Worst Is Over as COVID-19 Spikes

A new poll by Pew Research Center revealed 40% of Americans believe the worst of our coronavirus crisis is over, despite the startling spike in new cases across the nation.

A full 61% of Republicans said the country had suffered the worst of the pandemic and 65% said they were now comfortable eating in a restaurant.

According to Vox, this is in sharp contrast to Democrats who said they were still worried about COVID-19 and were uncomfortable going to salons, restaurants, or social gatherings. Only 28% of Democrats said they would be O.K. eating in a restaurant.

Democrats have argued for more caution reopening the country, and leaned to enforcing restrictive measures such as mandating the wearing of face masks, as suggested by presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden.

Overall, according to Vox, the survey conducted between June 16-22 and involved 4,708 American adults, found a striking ideological divide between how Republicans and Democrats regarded the COVID-19 threat.

Although the poll did indicate Americans of both parties are less worried about the virus than they were in April when only 26% revealed they felt the crisis was on the wane, experts warn the facts indicate the U.S. has a long way to go before we get over the hump. Cases have skyrocketed in the past few weeks. Last Friday, the U.S. recorded its greatest one-day surge with a whopping 45,498 new cases according to Vox.

According to Reuters, Republican leaders are now ardently advocating the wearing of masks as cases surge.

"It's a situation that didn't have to be," said epidemiologist Jaime Slaughter-Acey, of the University of Minnesota.

She told Vox, states failed to be "proactive with respect to mitigating the COVID-19 pandemic and to help normalize culture to adopt practices that would stem the tide of transmission as well as the development of COVID-19 complications."