Presidential Election Travel Survey 2024 – 55% Would Prefer Sitting Next to Kamala Harris on a Flight; More Think a Donald Trump Presidency Will Lead to Lower Travel Costs

Will you avoid traveling to any United States cities around the election due to potential mass protests/riots?

Photo: Eric Jones screenshot via SurveyMonkey

Let’s take a look at the survey results:

• Yes, but only if Harris wins. — 24.76%
• Yes, but only if Trump wins. — 16.03%
• Yes, regardless of who wins. — 23.70%
• No. — 35.51%

Interesting Demographic Comparison — More men than women will avoid US cities around the election for fear of potential mass protests or riots. 73.04% of all American men said they would avoid traveling to US cities depending on who wins. This includes 30.79% if Harris wins, 21.02% if Trump wins, and 21.23% who said regardless of who wins. On the other hand, only 57.44% of women said they would avoid traveling to US cities depending on the results. This includes 19.79% if Harris wins, 11.91% if Trump wins, and 25.74% regardless of who wins. Both men and women are more likely to avoid traveling to US cities around the election if Harris wins.

Key Takeaway — More than 64% of all American adults state that, depending on who wins, they will avoid traveling to some US cities around the election due to potential mass protests or riots. According to the latest census, the 64.49% of American adults that said this equates to more than 167 million people. More than 167 million American adults intending to avoid travel to cities around the election is staggering. 40.79% of American adults, or almost 106 million people, will avoid cities if Trump wins. Even more so, 48.46% or 126 million people will avoid cities if Harris wins. Only 35.51% of American adults, or 92 million people, said they would not avoid traveling to any US cities around the election.

Do you think a Kamala Harris or Donald Trump presidency will lead to lower travel costs on things such as flights, hotels, car rentals, and gasoline?

Photo: Eric Jones screenshot via SurveyMonkey

Let’s take a look at the survey results:

• Harris. — 31.67%
• Trump. — 35.22%
• Neither will make an impact. — 33.11%

Interesting Demographic Comparison — The Middle Atlantic region has the people most likely to think that a Harris presidency will lead to lower travel costs for flights, hotels, car rentals, and gasoline. 42.38% of people in the Middle Atlantic region think Harris will lead to lower travel costs. The states in the Middle Atlantic region include New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. On the other hand, the East South Central region, with 39.02%, is the region most likely to say a Trump presidency will lower travel costs. The East South Central region includes Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Tennessee.

Key Takeaway — More Americans feel a Donald Trump presidency will lead to lower travel costs than a Kamala Harris presidency. The 3.55% of American adults who think Donald Trump will do a better job lowering travel costs may seem small, but it represents more than 9 million people. One-third of Americans believe neither will make an impact on travel costs.

Do you think a Donald Trump or Kamala Harris presidency will lead to better consumer protection laws for travel such as easier and clearer access to refunds/compensation in the event of a major flight delay or cancellation?

Photo: Eric Jones screenshot via SurveyMonkey

Let’s take a look at the survey results:

• Harris. — 35.99%
• Trump. — 34.93%
• Neither will make an impact. — 29.08%

Interesting Demographic Comparison — The oldest American adults over age 60 are the age bracket most likely to think a Donald Trump presidency will lead to better consumer protection laws for travel. 37.43% of Americans over 60 think this. On the other hand, the age bracket of Americans who think a Harris presidency will lead to better consumer protection laws for travel is 45-60.

Key Takeaway — Slightly more Americans think a Kamala Harris presidency will lead to better consumer protection laws for travel than a Donald Trump presidency. The 1.06% difference still represents nearly 3 million people. The 29.08% of American adults who think the election outcome will not impact travel costs represent more than 75 million people.

Which presidential candidate would you rather be seated next to on a long flight? 

Let’s take a look at the survey results:

• Harris. — 55.09%
• Trump. — 44.91%

Interesting Demographic Comparison — Both men and women said they would rather be seated next to Kamala Harris on a long plane flight than Donald Trump. 50.53% of men chose Kamala Harris. In comparison, 58.84% of women chose Kamala Harris as a seatmate. Every age bracket except the oldest American adults said they would rather be seated next to Kamala Harris. Only people over age 60 said Donald Trump was their preferred seatmate for a long flight.

Key Takeaway — More than 10% of American adults said they would rather be seated next to Kamala Harris than Donald Trump on a long plane flight. The 10.18% of Americans that said this represents more than 26 million people. This is the widest margin between the candidates in any of our questions.

Survey Methodology

This 2024 Election Travel Survey was conducted by SurveyMonkey on behalf of The Vacationer. In total, 1,042 Americans over the age of 18 were polled on October 4. Of those surveyed, 45.20% were male and 54.80% were female. The age breakdown of participants included in this survey was 12.57% in the range 18-29, 35.12% in the range 30-44, 35.12% in the range 45-60, and 17.18% over 60. This survey has a confidence level of 95% and a margin of error of ±3.098%. You can learn more about SurveyMonkey’s sampling method by clicking here.

The questions were chosen and the results were analyzed by the post author, Eric Jones, who is a Mathematics and Statistics Professor at Rowan College South Jersey.

Featured Image: Eric Jones / The Vacationer