Christian Smith
(The hill) – Two-thirds of American adults said they are concerned that “extremists” will commit acts of violence after the 2024 elections if they are not satisfied with the results, according to a survey released Thursday.
On a Reuters/Ipsos Surveyheld May 7-14, 68% of U.S. adults said they strongly agree (33%) or somewhat agree (35%) with the statement: “I am concerned that extremists will commit acts of violence after the election if they are unhappy with the result of the election.”
Only 15% said they somewhat disagreed (10%) or completely disagreed (5%) with this statement, while 15% said they did not know.
This sentiment was especially prevalent among Democrats, 83% of whom said they strongly (47%) or somewhat (36%) agreed with concerns about political violence. Only 8% said they disagreed and 9% said they didn’t know.
The concern still appeared to transcend party lines, with 65% of Republicans strongly (25%) or somewhat (40%) agreeing with the concerns, and with 69% of independents strongly (34%) or somewhat (36%) agreeing with the concerns. concerns.
Among Republicans, 22% disagreed with the concerns, while 16% of independents disagreed with the concerns. Twelve percent of Republicans and 14% of independents said they didn’t know.
The poll comes ahead of a November rematch between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump.
Trump – who has yet to publicly acknowledge Biden’s 2020 victory – made a major effort after losing that election to overturn the results and remain in power. He faces two criminal charges – one federally and one in Georgia – that accuse him of committing crimes in connection with these efforts.
On January 6, 2021, thousands of Trump supporters, seeking to prevent the transfer of power, participated in a violent attack on the Capitol that resulted in multiple deaths.
Trump suggested in a recent interview with Time magazine faced with the possibility of violence if he loses the elections – although he insisted that he will win a “great victory” and therefore, he said, “there will be no violence”.
“And if we don’t win, you know, it depends. It always depends on the fairness of an election,” Trump added when pressed later about what would happen if he lost.
A recent Bloomberg/Morning Consult survey asked voters in seven swing states about the likelihood of political violence during elections and its consequences. Almost half (49%) said they expected violence.
The Reuters/Ipsos poll included 3,934 American adults and had a margin of error of 1.7 percentage points.
