October 14, 2020: Fifty-two percent (52%) of voters now believe the worst of the pandemic is still to come. That’s down three points from a week ago but up four from two weeks ago. A Scott Rasmussen national survey also found that 27% believe the worst is behind us and 21% are not sure.[1]

Those results suggest that there was an increase in pessimism following news that President Trump tested positive for COVID-19. The pessimism has eased slightly since his recovery but is still higher than before the president's diagnosis.

Prior to the president testing positive, weekly testing by Scott Rasmussen had found optimism growing steadily for a couple of months.[1]

Thirty-five percent (35%) of men believe the worst is behind us. So do 20% of women.[1]

Forty-six percent (46%) of Republicans now believe the worst is behind us. However, 70% of Democrats and 53% of independents believe the worst is still to come.[1]

The table below highlights selected results showing trends over the past few months.[1]

Each weekday, Scott Rasmussen’s Number of the Day explores interesting and newsworthy topics at the intersection of culture, politics, and technology. Columns published on Ballotpedia reflect the views of the author.

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