Eighty one percent of Democrats believe states should disqualify former president Donald Trump from presidential ballots, according to a new CBS News/YouGov poll.
By contrast, 90 percent of Republicans believe states should keep Trump’s name on the ballot.
Independents are more closely split: 44 percent believe states should remove Trump’s name from ballots, while 56 percent believe states should allow Trump’s name to remain on ballots.
Both Colorado and Maine have disqualified Trump from their respective primary ballots because his actions in the wake of the 2020 election allegedly violated Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, which forbids individuals who have “engaged in insurrection” from seeking federal office.
Maine secretary of state Shenna Bellows, a Democrat, ruled last month that Trump is disqualified from the state’s ballot in response to three legal challenges against the former president’s ballot eligibility in the state.
“The events of January 6, 2021 were unprecedented and tragic,” Bellows wrote in her 34-page decision. “They were an attack not only upon the Capitol and government officials, but also an attack on the rule of law. The evidence here demonstrates that they occurred at the behest of, and with the knowledge and support of, the outgoing President. The U.S. Constitution does not tolerate an assault on the foundations of our government, and [Maine law] requires me to act in response.”
Trump’s appearance on the ballot is facing lawsuits in at least 13 states, including Texas, Nevada, and Wisconsin.
The U.S. Supreme Court recently agreed to weigh in on the Colorado supreme court’s decision to disqualify Trump from the state’s ballot. The Court is set to hear oral arguments in the case on February 8.
Meanwhile, the Minnesota supreme court dismissed one such case in November, holding that there “is no state statute that prohibits a major political party from placing on the presidential nomination ballot, or sending delegates to the national convention supporting, a candidate who is ineligible for office.” But the court’s ruling said that the body would not ban a challenge to Trump’s eligibility from appearing on the state’s general-election ballot.
The poll, which was taken in the days leading up to the third anniversary of the January 6, 2021 Capitol riot, found that more Republicans now approve of rioters’ actions than they did three years ago.
In January 2021, 21 percent of Republicans approved of the rioters’ actions. Now, 30 percent of Republicans are approving. Meanwhile, three years ago 28 percent disapproved somewhat, compared to 38 percent who now say the same. And in 2021, 51 percent disapproved strongly; that number has since dropped to 32 percent.
A slight majority (51 percent) believe losses will be accepted peacefully in future presidential elections, while 49 percent believe there will be violence over losses.
Additionally, 70 percent of respondents said democracy is threatened, while 30 percent believe it is secure.
The poll was conducted between January 3 and 5 among 2,157 adults in the U.S. and has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.8 percentage points.