The phenomena of unidentified flying objects returned to Congress for the first time in decades last week for a rare hearing about their existence. And it appears most registered voters are believers: The latest Morning Consult/Politico survey shows 62% of voters think there is extraterrestrial life, and of those, 79% believe the government has concealed the existence of UFOs from the public.
What the numbers say
- Democrats (68%) are more likely than independents (62%) and Republicans (55%) to believe in the existence of extraterrestrial life. Gen Z voters (76%) and millennials (72%) are bigger believers in life beyond Earth than Gen Xers (59%) and baby boomers (54%).
- Of those who said they believe in extraterrestrial life, 84% of Republicans said they think the government has concealed the existence of UFOs from the public, as well as 73% of independents and 79% of Democrats. Big majorities of each generational group agree.
- The Department of Defense has been at the forefront of research into UFOs, in an initiative known as the Advanced Aviation Threat Identification Program that was only confirmed to exist in 2017 despite being active since 2007. Among voters whose top issue is security, 48% said they believe in the existence of extraterrestrial life.
Why it matters
During his opening statement at the House Intelligence Counterterrorism, Counterintelligence and Counterproliferation Subcommittee hearing, Chair André Carson (D-Ind.) said “transparency is desperately needed” on UFOs and other unidentified aerial phenomena.
Despite calls for transparency, Carson said the federal government’s research in this area has been shrouded in secrecy, although two DOD representatives at the hearing offered little in the way of new information.
Meanwhile, public reports have found no evidence of extraterrestrial life, even as the clamor to gain an understanding beyond Earth continues and has received backing from NASA and private companies including SpaceX.
The May 20-22, 2022, survey was conducted among a representative sample of 2,005 registered voters, with an unweighted margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points.
