WASHINGTON — One day after the U.S. House of Representatives impeached outgoing President Donald Trump for inciting last week's insurrection at the Capitol, a new NBC News poll finds that American voters are divided on his impeachment and removal from office, with most Republicans standing firmly behind the president.
Overall, 50 percent of voters nationwide say Trump should be impeached and removed from office, while 48 percent are opposed.
By party, 89 percent of Democratic voters believe Trump should be impeached and removed from office, compared with just 8 percent of Republican voters. Independents are split, with 45 percent in support and 53 percent in opposition.
The poll was conducted Jan. 10-13. While the House voted to impeach the president on Wednesday, the Senate will not take up the matter until Jan. 19, just one day before Trump's term ends, meaning the trial will not be concluded while he is still in office.
"While a few Republican elected officials have broken with Trump, Republican voters are sticking with him for now," said Democratic pollster Jeff Horwitt of Hart Research Associates, who conducted this survey with Republican pollster Bill McInturff of Public Opinion Strategies.
"As we’ve seen over the course of his term, major event after major event does little to shake Trump’s standing with Republicans," Horwitt added.
Indeed, these numbers are virtually identical to voters' attitudes about Trump's impeachment and removal over Ukraine in the Dec. 2019 NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll.
Back then, adult respondents were split, 48 percent to 48 percent, on the president's impeachment and removal from office, with 83 percent of Democrats but just 8 percent of Republicans in favor.
The Democratic-controlled U.S. House of Representatives impeached Trump for his actions regarding Ukraine, but the U.S. Senate acquitted him.
The poll also finds a majority of voters — 57 percent — believing that last week’s protests resulting in rioters overtaking the U.S. Capitol was an act of terrorism, versus 40 percent who disagree.
Once again, there’s a significant divide by party here: 90 percent of Democratic voters call it an act of terrorism, compared with only 27 percent of Republican voters.
And the poll shows 49 percent of voters saying the attack on the Capitol is more likely the start of a major increase in violent political protests and riots in the United States, while 45 percent say it’s more likely to be an isolated event.
By party, 59 percent of Democrats believe the attack is more likely the start of future violent protests, while just 36 percent of Republicans agree.
The NBC News poll was conducted Jan. 10-13, 2021 among 1,000 registered voters — 590 of whom were reached only by cell phone — and the survey has an overall margin of error of plus-minus 3.1 percentage points.
