Sharia polls at 43% with young Americans. Do they know what they are endorsing?

By Brian C. Joondeph, M.D. | Commentary, Rasmussen Reports

Young Americans take pride in being socially progressive.

They support LGBTQ rights, abortion on demand, and personal freedom.

Their generation grew up with same-sex marriage, Pride Month, reproductive choice, and the idea that government should stay out of the bedroom.

So why are so many suddenly enamored with sharia law?

A new Rasmussen Reports/Our Republic survey found that only 21% of likely voters nationwide view sharia positively, compared with 57% who view it negatively. Then comes the kicker.

Among voters ages 18 to 24, 43% view sharia positively, as do 39% of those ages 25 to 29. Among voters 40 and older, the share is just 16%.

Even more striking, 27% of voters under 30 would allow an American community to adopt sharia as its legal code if a majority of residents wanted it.

One wonders whether they know what they are endorsing.

Sharia is not a single legal code, and its interpretation varies widely across the Islamic world.

Yet some countries that incorporate Islamic jurisprudence into their criminal laws bear little resemblance to the progressive utopian society younger Americans say they want.
Consider homosexuality.

The Human Dignity Trust reports that 12 countries have jurisdictions where the death penalty can be imposed for private, consensual same-sex activity.

It is actually enforced in several, including Iran, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Yemen, and parts of northern Nigeria.

Meanwhile, young Americans overwhelmingly support LGBTQ rights. PRRI reports that support among 18- to 29-year-olds for laws protecting LGBTQ Americans from discrimination has stayed around 80% for much of the past decade. Quite a disconnect.

Then there is abortion. Islamic jurisprudence on abortion is complex and
varies by country and circumstance, so it would be inaccurate to say that
sharia universally prohibits it.

But abortion laws in many Muslim-majority countries are substantially more restrictive than those favored by young Americans.

Iran goes further still: under a 2021 law, large-scale abortion can be classified as “corruption on earth,” potentially carrying the death penalty.

This year, Pew Research found that 66% of Americans ages 18 to 29 believe abortion should be legal in all or most cases. Another huge disconnect.
Then there is alcohol, which is prohibited under traditional Islamic teaching.

Apparently nobody told happy hour.

According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, 47% of Americans ages 18 to 25 drank alcohol in the previous month in 2024.

Granted, younger Americans are drinking less than previous generations, but probably not because they are embracing Islamic jurisprudence.

So what explains the enthusiasm for sharia? Perhaps some of it reflects shifting attitudes toward the Middle East.

This year, Gallup found that 53% of Americans ages 18 to 34 sympathize more with Palestinians, compared with only 23% who sympathize more with Israelis.

Sympathy for Palestinians is not synonymous with support for sharia, but these generational trajectories are difficult to ignore.

There may also be something deeper. Young Americans are frustrated.

A 2026 Harvard Youth Poll found that 45% are struggling to make ends meet or getting by with little financial security. Half say inflation affects them “a lot,” and 41% say the same about housing prices.

Many believe the political and economic system isn’t working for them.

That dissatisfaction deserves to be taken seriously, but frustration can make alternatives – whether sharia, socialism, or something else – seem attractive simply because they are alternatives.

This may help explain the strange political stance of Western progressives who champion societies whose prevailing views on sexuality, abortion, women’s rights, and religious freedom they would vigorously oppose at home. Consider “Queers for Palestine.”

Perhaps sharia has simply become another symbol of rebellion against the Western establishment. Or another exotic alternative whose details matter less than the fact that it isn’t the status quo. But before embracing an alternative social order, it may be worth reading the fine print. Be careful what you wish for.

Brian C. Joondeph, MD, is a Colorado-based ophthalmologist who writes frequently about medicine, science, and public policy.

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