People who feel that using violence

The 2020 US Presidential election confirmed a profound ideological divide in American society, which has been linked to phenomena such as a deeply partisan media, populism and the inability of the US two-party electoral system to address divisive issues. According to 2017 2020 polling data, recent years have witnessed a sharp increase in support for the use of violence to achieve political ends among both Democratic and Republican respondents (see Figure 5). Another survey indicated that as many as 32 % of registered voters (and 68 % of Republican voters) do not perceive the 2021 Capitol Hill siege as a threat to democracy. Deeply entrenched divides combined with widespread acceptance of violence provide a fertile ground for violent extremism, which may manifest as terrorist activities. Indeed, the 2020 Global Terrorism Index attests to a surge in right-wing political terrorism in the USA, and more broadly in the West