A new survey shows the majority of American voters support the third indictment of former President Donald Trump, who was arraigned this week on charges tied to his attempts to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
What Happened: A new poll from Morning Consult shows that 52% of voters approve of the third indictment against Trump, while 40% disapprove and 8% had no opinion on the matter.
To no surprise, the difference on whether he deserved the indictment was split between Democrats and Republicans.
Morning Consult found that 80% of Democratic voters support the indictment and 12% disapprove. Among Republican voters, only 18% approve of the third indictment, with 76% disapproving.
The survey asked voters if they think the third indictment is more related to evidence of a crime or done to damage Trump’s political career.
Voters were split, with 44% saying the indictment was more due to evidence of a crime and 39% saying it was done more so to damage Trump’s political career.
Most Democratic voters (72%) said the new indictment was due to evidence of a crime. Republican voters (69%) disagreed, believing the new charges were meant solely to damage Trump’s political career.
The poll from Morning Consult also asked questions related to the outcome of the third indictment. If Trump is found guilty, 39% of voters are “very concerned” of the potential for violent protests.
If Trump is not found guilty in his third indictment case, 38% of Americans say the justice system may be lacking integrity.
Why It’s Important: The 52% of voters who approve of the third indictment matches the total that showed support of charges against Trump related to classified documents found at Mar-a-Lago.
In a poll over the classified documents, a higher percent of Democrats and Republicans approve of the indictment.
The big difference this time around is independent voters. Fifty-nine percent of independent voters agree with the charges over the 2020 election, while only 49% approved of the charges related to the classified documents.
A higher percent of voters saw the motivation for the classified documents charges being to damage Trump’s political career.
Trump, who pleaded not guilty to all charges, continues to lead the race among Republican candidates for the presidency in 2024. In the Morning Consult weekly poll, he has a 43-point lead over Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis despite a growing list of court dates in 2023 and 2024.
Next week’s poll will be the first that comes after the third indictment was announced.
Produced in association with Benzinga
