A recent NBC News poll seeking voters’ opinions of Donald Trump, JD Vance, Elon Musk, DOGE, the Republican Party, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, DEI and the Democratic Party is revealing a growing polarization within the ranks of white voters.

NBC national political correspondent Steve Kornacki says the fault line is growing fastest between the demographics of upscale white women with college degrees and blue collar white men with no college degree.

Kornacki reports that it’s not just a difference of opinion but the equivalent of two demographics who are living in polar opposite political and cultural universes.

As a voting bloc, both groups bring considerable clout to the table with non-college white men making up 18% of voters in last year’s election compare to college-educated white women at 17%.

Nowhere are the differences between these groups more noticeable than on the issues of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and support for Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

On the issue of DEI, voters were offered two differing statements about DEI and asked which one most closely represented their own opinions.

Statement A read:

We should continue DEI programs because diverse perspectives reflect our country, create innovative ideas and solutions, encourage unity, and make our workplaces fair and inclusive.

Statement B said:

We should eliminate DEI programs because they create divisions and inefficiencies in the workplace by putting too much emphasis on race and other social factors over merit, skills, and experience. 

Kornacki reports that three of the four groups, including non-college educated white men, college educated white men and non-college educated white women picked Statement B by double digit margins.

However, college-educated white women sided with Statement A by nearly 40 percentage points.

On the subject of support for Ukrainian president Zelenskyy, less than 5% of non-college white men registered approval, while 53% of college-educated white women expressed their approval.

Kornacki says, “What this all means is that white college-educated women have become not just a core Democratic constituency but also a force that has helped to propel the party to the left and magnify its emphasis on cultural issues.”

It also should raise some serious questions about what is taking place within America’s institutions of higher education that may be contributing to the growing polarization.

The poll, which was conducted between March 7-11, surveyed 1,000 register voters nationally and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1%.