After an increase in hostile incidents leading up to the 2024 election, the latest survey results indicate that both hostile experiences and worry about future hostility among local elected officials remained elevated through the end of the year. Threats and harassment continued to have a chilling effect on the functions of local government, with officials reporting particularly high rates of decreased willingness to engage in activities like posting on social media and working on controversial topics.
This research is produced as part of a joint project launched by BDI and CivicPulse in 2022 to conduct representative national surveys of local officials on their experiences facing threats and harassment. The 10th survey round covers the fourth quarter of 2024 and includes responses from over 400 local elected officials and 200 school board officials, putting the total number of participants across all survey waves at more than 4,000. Quarterly surveys of municipal, county, township, and school board officials will continue into 2025.
Click to access the survey data or read analysis of key trends for the quarter.
