New Impeachment Poll Shows Major Warning Signs for GOP

October 01, 2019

New polling conducted by Civis Analytics shows that voters are paying close attention to the ongoing impeachment process, with a plurality of likely 2020 voters supporting impeachment.

In a finding that should greatly concern congressional Republicans, a majority of voters (54%) side with the argument that ‘Republicans are failing to hold the President accountable.’  This suggests that if Republicans continue to carry Trump’s water and obstruct the investigation, they will pay a personal political penalty in addition to the national impact.

  • Voters are paying attention to the impeachment inquiry. Among a presidential electorate, 67% of respondents report following news of the impeachment inquiry somewhat or very closely, including 76% of Clinton 2016 voters and 68% of Trump 2016 voters.

  • Impeachment is supported by 45% of respondents and opposed by 40%. The numbers among Trump and Clinton voters almost mirror each other (+55 among 2016 Clinton voters, -51 among 2016 Trump voters), but 2016 third-party voters (+13) and 2016 non-voters (+13) are in favor of impeachment. Modeled state-specific numbers reveal even greater trouble for Trump. A majority of voters in the key battleground states of Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Florida support impeachment. Even the more Republican-leaning states of Arizona, Texas and Georgia show significant support for impeachment.

  • Voters believe Republicans are failing to hold Trump accountable. Asked to choose between whether “Democrats are overreaching by pursuing impeachment,” or that “Republicans are failing to hold the President accountable,” respondents chose the pro-Democratic option by a margin of 54%-46%. Again, much of this margin comes from 2016 third-party voters, who back the Democratic position by a margin of 60%-40%, as well as 2016 non-voters, who do so by a margin of 59%-41%. In another concerning sign for Trump and congressional Republicans, 57% of undecided voters say that Republicans aren’t doing enough to hold Trump accountable.

About This Poll

Civis Analytics conducted this poll online between September 28, 2019 and September 30, 2019 with a total sample of 3,963 modeled 2020 voters nationally.