Political violence has been on the rise in recent months, and most Americans expect the fatal trend to continue, according to a new survey. Politico and Public First released a poll Monday which found that a majority of Americans anticipate political violence in the U.S. to worsen in the coming years.

In total, 55% of respondents said that they expect political violence to increase, while only 29% said that they expect political violence to decrease. Additionally, 50% of respondents said that they believe it is either somewhat likely (31%) or very likely (19%) that a political candidate will be assassinated within the next five years. Only 18% said that such an occurrence was somewhat unlikely (9%) or very unlikely (9%).

While a total of 24% of Americans polled replied that political violence can sometimes be justified, that share was even higher among young voters. Over a third of voters aged 18 to 24 (36%), 25 to 34 (35%), and 35 to 44 (34%) agreed that some circumstances justify political violence. In comments to The Washington Stand, Family Research Council Senior Fellow for Biblical Worldview Joseph Backholm said, “The expectation of more political violence and the rising belief that it can be justified are largely connected. Unfortunately, growing secularism in the West has turned government into our God. Somehow, we see government as both the cause and the solution to all our problems.”

He explained, “Since the people are the government, we see those who enable government we dislike not as neighbors we disagree with but as the source of all our problems. Secularism provides both unreasonable expectations for the present and no reason for hope when our expectations are not met. When we believe certain individuals are the source of all the world’s problems, we can see why some people would come to believe a little violence is justified to bring about utopia.”

“People across the political spectrum all recognize the world is broken, but misunderstanding the source of the problem leads to solutions that actually make the problem worse,” Backholm continued. “The solution to all of it is understanding that God is God, not government. If we do that, we are much less likely to despair when government fails to solve all our problems.”

Although Politico noted that its survey found “little partisan divide in that belief,” much of the political violence seen in recent months has been perpetrated by left-wing actors. Last year, President Donald Trump survived two assassination attempts, and this year has seen violence and rioting targeting federal immigration authorities, the murder of Turning Point USA founder and Trump administration ally Charlie Kirk, and Democratic nominee for Attorney General of Virginia Jay Jones admitting to sharing text messages discussing killing a Republican opponent and his children. Trump administration officials have also been forced to live on military bases as progressive activists target them for harassment and death threats.

Shortly after Kirk’s murder in September, an Economist/YouGov survey found that one-third (33%) of Americans faulted the Left for the rise in political violence, while 29% said that the right-wing is responsible, and 24% blamed both Left and Right. Overall, 67% of respondents agreed that the country has become more politically divided over the last five years. Immediately following the first assassination attempt against Trump last year, an Unheard poll discovered that “one-third of Democrat respondents agreed with the statement, ‘I wish Trump’s assassin hadn’t missed.’” Likewise, a Napolitan News Service survey following the second assassination attempt against Trump found that over a quarter of Democrats said that the U.S. would be “better off” if Trump had been assassinated.

Backholm explained, “Political violence is more of a problem on the Left because leftism is inherently secular and therefore offers no hope when life isn’t going the way you prefer. Their worldview tells them sin isn’t a problem, everything bad is caused by systemic injustice, and government should be able to solve that problem if only the right people are in charge.” He continued, “When the plan doesn’t work, and things are going badly, they have no reason for hope. So when you despair, it’s normal to lash out violently against the people you blame for your problems unless you have a reason not to.”

“Faith in God, and the gospel specifically, gives people a reason to have hope despite bad circumstances,” Backholm emphasized. “It gives us a reason to forgive those who have wronged us and even work for their good. The gospel is inherently hopeful, but secularism is inherently despairing, which is why despair is more common on the Left. A world without God is very sad.”