Is the NFL woke?
That’s one suggestion in new polling from the University of North Florida’s Public Opinion Research Lab (PORL) and Sport Impact Jax (SIJ), which shows Democrats are more likely to watch Sunday’s Super Bowl than Republicans or independents.
Whereas 75% of Democrats will watch the Seattle Seahawks and the Denver Broncos face off, only 65% of Democrats and 63% of unaligned voters plan to watch the game.
“This year’s Super Bowl features two teams from blue cities in blue states, takes place in a blue city in a blue state, and features two openly anti-Trump musical acts (Bad Bunny and Green Day). Many aspects of American culture have become politically-coded, and this year the Super Bowl appears to be coded blue,” commented incoming faculty director of UNF’s Public Opinion Research Lab, Dr. Sean Freeder.
Black voters are more likely than voters of other ethnicities to watch, with 82% reporting they are tuning in, compared with 70% of Hispanics and 68% of White voters.
And college graduates are more likely to watch than non-college graduates, 72% to 66%.
Meanwhile, when the aforementioned Bad Bunny performs, those Republicans watching are more likely than not to turn away … perhaps to check out the musical stylings of Kid Rock during the Turning Point USA alternative halftime show.
Only 40% of the GOP faithful say they won’t turn the channel, with 57% tuning out. Conversely, 89% of Democrats will watch the halftime entertainment at the Super Bowl. 77% of NPA voters will also keep their attention on the screen.
823 registered Florida voters were polled from Jan. 30 through Feb. 3, 2026, to get these results.
