Majority of Americans support Veterans Day as a national holiday and plan to observe the holiday

Washington, DC, November 9, 2022 — A recent Ipsos poll finds that three quarters of Americans support Veterans Day being recognized as a national holiday. As many plan to celebrate the holiday, the study also finds that a majority believe we can do more to support veterans in their transition from active duty to civilian life.  Large majorities of Americans believe it is important to support the transition process for veterans through providing reliable healthcare, time for paid self-care, documentation of their skills and training, and assistance with broad life skills.

Detailed Findings

1. Most Americans support Veterans Day as a national holiday and plan to observe the holiday.

• Three-quarters of Americans (75%) say they support Veterans Day being a national holiday, the same as when we asked last year. Eighty-one percent of respondents who have served, or had family members serve, in the Armed Forces saying the same.
• Two-thirds (65%) of Americans, and 84% of respondents who have a direct tie to the Armed Forces, say they plan to observe Veterans Day in some capacity. The most popular way Americans plan to observe Veterans Day is by flying a flag (31% among all Americans).
• Other ways Americans and those who have a direct tie to the Armed Forces plan to celebrate Veterans Day include attending a Veterans Day parade or ceremony (14% and 24%, respectively), visiting a veteran friend or relative (12% and 20%), and supporting a veteran-owned business (11% and 20%).

2. A majority of Americans believe it is important to support veterans’ transition from active duty to civilian life, and that we need to do more to do so.

• Only 37% of Americans agree that The Armed Forces does a good job at preparing military members for transition to normal life. Among those who have served or have had family members serve in the Armed Forces, around half (47%) share this sentiment.
• An overwhelming majority of both Americans and those who have a direct tie to the Armed Forces believe there should be more programs in place to take care of our veterans (90% and 96%, respectively).
• There is nearly universal agreement among the American public, and among those who have a close tie to the Armed Forces, that it is important for the military to do certain things to help veterans transition from active duty to civilian life.
• Among the most important: provide reliable healthcare coverage for veterans and their family (nearly three-quarters say it is very important) and provide veterans with documentation of their industry-specific skills for job applications (65% very important).

About the Study

This Ipsos Study was conducted October 28-30 by Ipsos using our KnowledgePanel®. This poll is based on a nationally representative probability sample of 1,030 general population adults age 18 or older. This sample includes 163 people who have served in the Armed Forces or have a family member who has served in the Armed Forces.

The survey was conducted using KnowledgePanel, the largest and most well-established online probability-based panel that is representative of the adult US population. Our recruitment process employs a scientifically developed addressed-based sampling methodology using the latest Delivery Sequence File of the USPS – a database with full coverage of all delivery points in the US. Households invited to join the panel are randomly selected from all available households in the U.S. Persons in the sampled households are invited to join and participate in the panel. Those selected who do not already have internet access are provided a tablet and internet connection at no cost to the panel member. Those who join the panel and who are selected to participate in a survey are sent a unique password-protected log-in used to complete surveys online. As a result of our recruitment and sampling methodologies, samples from KnowledgePanel cover all households regardless of their phone or internet status and findings can be reported with a margin of sampling error and projected to the general population.

The study was conducted in English. The data were weighted to adjust for gender by age, race/ethnicity, education, Census region, metropolitan status, household income, race/ethnicity by gender, race/ethnicity by age, race/ethnicity by education and race/ethnicity by region. The demographic benchmarks came from the 2021 March Supplement of the Current Population Survey (CPS).

1. Gender (Male, Female) by Age (18–29, 30–44, 45-59 and 60+)
2. Race/Hispanic Ethnicity (White Non-Hispanic, Black Non-Hispanic, Other, Non-Hispanic, Hispanic, 2+ Races, Non-Hispanic)
3. Education (Less than High School, High School, Some College, Bachelor or higher)
4. Census Region (Northeast, Midwest, South, West)
5. Metropolitan status (Metro, non-Metro)
6. Household Income (Under $25,000, $25,000-$49,999, $50,000-$74,999, $75,000-$99,999, $100,000-$149,999, $150,000+)

The margin of sampling error is plus or minus 3.1 percentage points at the 95% confidence level, for results based on the entire sample of adults. The margin of sampling error takes into account the design effect, which was 1.06. For those who have served in the Armed Forces or have a family member who has served in the Armed Forces, the margin of sampling error is plus or minus 7.9 at the 95% confidence interval. This margin of sampling error takes into account the design effect, which was 1.05 for those who have served in the Armed Forces or have a family member who has served in the Armed Forces. In our reporting of the findings, percentage points are rounded off to the nearest whole number. As a result, percentages in a given table column may total slightly higher or lower than 100%. In questions that permit multiple responses, columns may total substantially more than 100%, depending on the number of different responses offered by each respondent.

The results of this poll are trended against the following previous polls:

October 29 – October 31, 2021; n=1,018; CI: +/- 3.3

For more information on this news release, please contact:

Mallory Newall

Vice President, US

Public Affairs

+1 202 374-2613

[email protected]

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