New Poll Shows Boost of Confidence in Military Driven

The American public's confidence in the military rose this year after Republican sentiment turned around following President-elect Donald Trump's victory in the November election, according to the latest version of an annual defense survey from the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute.

Overall this year, 51% of respondents said they had "a great deal" of confidence in the military, stemming years of declining confidence, according to survey results released Thursday. By comparison, in last year's survey, 46% had great confidence.

The bump this year was driven by Republicans, specifically Trump supporters. While Democrats' confidence in the military stayed the same year-over-year, the poll, which was conducted after the election, found 56% of Republicans had a great deal of confidence in the military this year compared to 48% last year. There was also an 8-point jump in confidence among self-identified Trump voters from last year to this year.