A new NPR/Marist University poll found that 83% of Republican voters want Donald Trump to remain in the 2024 presidential race despite his recent legal troubles regarding classified documents found in his Florida residence.
At the opposite extreme, a majority of Democrats (87%) believe Trump should resign his nomination. Fifty-eight percent of independents are of the same opinion.
However, overall, 43% of respondents believe that the former president should maintain his candidacy. Marist Institute for Public Opinion Director Lee M. Miringoff commented:
As former President Trump deals with his latest legal woes, Republicans are mostly standing with him, while Democrats are calling for him to exit the 2024 campaign. ... Time will tell if this pattern holds, but for now, Republicans are grounded on where they stand on Trump regardless of these unfolding events.
NPR PBS NewsHour Marist Pol... by Verónica Silveri
The survey was conducted among 1,327 adults from June 12-14.
Nearly two-thirds of Republicans will continue to support Trump
Nearly two-thirds of Republicans said they will continue to support Trump. Sixty-four percent of Republican-leaning independents said the same. In addition, about 75% of GOP supporters hold a favorable opinion of the former president.
Trump is emerging as the GOP primary favorite among Republican voters. The former president achieved a 38-point lead (61%) over Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (23%) and has more than 57 points over the other candidates, according to a CBS/YouGov poll.
A politically motivated accusation
Eighty percent of GOP voters indicated that even if convicted, Trump should be able to be president, compared to 20% who think otherwise.
On the other hand, 76% said they were "concerned" that the indictment was politically motivated, and 12% expressed concern that the documents in Trump's possession posed a national security risk.
A large majority (74%) of voters stated that, if not Trump, they want a candidate "similar" to the former president to represent the GOP in the 2024 election, while 26% want the candidate to be someone different.
