74% Of Voters Say Democracy In The U.S. Is Under Threat, Quinnipiac University National Poll Finds; 52% Say President Trump Should Be Removed From Office

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Following last week's mob attack on the U.S. Capitol during a joint session of Congress to formally certify Joe Biden's victory in the 2020 presidential election, nearly three-quarters (74 percent) of voters say democracy in the United States is under threat, according to a Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University national poll of registered voters released today. Just 21 percent of voters say that democracy in the United States is alive and well.

"When it comes to whether American democracy is under threat, both Republicans and Democrats see a raging five-alarm fire, but clearly disagree on who started it," said Quinnipiac University Polling Analyst Tim Malloy.

PRESIDENT TRUMP

A majority of voters, 56 percent, say they hold President Trump responsible for the storming of the U.S. Capitol, while 42 percent say they do not hold him responsible.

A slight majority, 52 - 45 percent, say President Trump should be removed from office. Voters also say 53 - 43 percent that he should resign as president.

"A majority of Americans hold President Trump responsible for the chaos at the Capitol, and a slight majority believe that he should be removed from office," added Malloy.

President Trump has a negative 33 - 60 percent job approval rating, which is a substantial drop from the negative 44 - 51 percent rating he received in December of 2020.

The president's job approval rating today ties his all-time low, which he received in August of 2017.

Voters are divided on whether they think President Trump is mentally stable. Forty-five percent say he is mentally stable, while 48 percent say he is not mentally stable. The findings are nearly identical to responses from a January 2018 poll, when 45 percent of voters said they thought Trump was mentally stable and 47 percent said he was not.

UNDERMINING DEMOCRACY

Voters say 60 - 34 percent that President Trump is undermining, not protecting, democracy. There are sharp political divides on this question. Democrats say 95 - 4 percent and independents say 64 - 28 percent that Trump is undermining democracy, while Republicans say 73 - 20 percent that Trump is protecting democracy.

Voters say 58 - 34 percent that the Republican members of Congress who tried to stop the formal certification of Joe Biden's victory in the 2020 presidential election were undermining democracy. Democrats say 90 - 9 percent and independents say 61 - 29 percent that the lawmakers were undermining democracy, and Republicans say 70 - 23 percent that they were protecting democracy.

Eight in 10 voters (80 percent) say the individuals who stormed the U.S. Capitol on January 6th were undermining democracy. Ten percent say they were protecting democracy and another 10 percent are unsure. Democrats say 95 - 3 percent, independents say 80 - 9 percent, and Republicans say 70 - 17 percent that they were undermining democracy.

STORMING OF THE CAPITOL

Voters are split on whether they consider what happened at the U.S. Capitol a coup attempt or not. Forty-seven percent say they consider it a coup attempt, 43 percent say they do not, and 10 percent say they are unsure. There is a near unanimous view among voters, 91 - 6 percent, that the individuals who stormed the U.S. Capitol on January 6th should be held accountable for their actions.

Voters also say, 81 - 12 percent, that extremism is a big problem in the United States.

"Pick them up and lock them up. There's no ambivalence on how to treat the mobs that breached the Capitol, and there is nearly the same level of alarm from Republicans and Democrats over extremism establishing a troubling foothold," added Malloy.

About 7 in 10 voters (71 percent) say that law enforcement officials did not do everything they could to prevent the initial storming of the U.S. Capitol on January 6th, while 19 percent say they did.

Seventy percent of voters say they are either very (35 percent) or somewhat (35 percent) concerned about the safety of elected officials in the United States, while 29 percent say they are either not so concerned (13 percent) or not concerned at all (16 percent).

2020 VOTER FRAUD

More than half of voters (58 percent) say they believe there was no widespread voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election, while 37 percent of voters do believe there was widespread voter fraud. That is almost identical to the response in December 2020, when voters said 58 - 38 percent that there was no widespread voter fraud.

Republicans say 73 - 21 percent that they believe there was widespread voter fraud. Democrats say 93 - 5 percent and independents say 60 - 36 percent that they do not believe there was widespread voter fraud.

BIDEN EXPECTATIONS

Looking ahead to when Joe Biden takes office, 31 percent of voters say they think he will be able to unite the country and 56 percent say they expect partisan divisions to remain the same as they are today. Fourteen percent are unsure.

1,239 self-identified registered voters nationwide were surveyed from January 7th - 10th with a margin of error of +/- 2.8 percentage points.

The Quinnipiac University Poll, directed by Douglas Schwartz, Ph.D., conducts gold standard surveys using random digit dialing with live interviewers calling landlines and cell phones. The Quinnipiac University Poll conducts nationwide surveys and polls in more than twenty states on national and statewide elections, as well as public policy issues.

Visit poll.qu.edu or www.facebook.com/quinnipiacpoll

Email poll@qu.edu, or follow us on Twitter @QuinnipiacPoll.

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