Most Americans now believe billionaires are a threat to democracy, new data shows

More than half of Americans (53%) believe billionaires threaten American democracy, according to data from Harris Poll’s annual American and Billionaires Survey, an increase of seven points from when the same question was asked last year.

The survey found that Americans in general are becoming less enamored with billionaires and that there are increasing regulations for people with high net worth, including a limit on how much wealth someone can accumulate.

More than half of respondents this year said they would like to see limits on wealth accumulation (53%, up from 46% in 2024), and these people largely believe no one should own more than $10 billion.

Americans also largely support more regulation for billionaires, with 71% of respondents saying there should be a billionaire tax and 64% saying the government should impose mandatory philanthropic involvement on people worth more than $1 billion.

More than a third of Americans believe that the US economy is an uneven playing field that prioritizes the ultra-wealthy. More than seven in 10 Americans agree that wealth inequality is a serious national problem.

Nearly all (94%) of respondents believe there is a wealth gap in America, citing rising costs of living that outpace incomes, corporate tax loopholes and the lack of affordable housing as the top factors.