Donald Trump still towers over Republican Party in popular stakes, poll shows
It’s Donald Trump first, daylight second. If senior Republicans thought his party influence was over, they better think again.
Donald Trump is by far the most popular figure among Republican voters according to fresh opinion polls, showing that even out of the White House the former president’s influence looms large over the party.
A Morning Consult poll published yesterday by Politico shows 59 per cent of Republican voters believe Trump should play a “major role” in the party’s future.
Significantly, Trump’s standing has improved 18 points since a similar poll conducted on January 6, when his supporters ran amok on Capitol Hill, and the following day.
The latest poll found just 27 per cent of Republicans believe the former president bears at least some responsibility for the riots, in which Congress was ransacked and five people were killed.
Another poll, by Quinnipiac University, shows three-quarters of Republicans want Trump, 74, to play a prominent role in the party’s future.
The polls present a headache for the Republican leadership. The party faces President Biden in the White House and Democrat majorities in the House of Representatives and the Senate.
Leading figures in the party have tried to distance themselves from Trump since he was acquitted on Saturday in his Senate impeachment trial.
The Morning Consult poll was conducted after the Senate trial. It shows 54 per cent of Republican voters would support Trump in a 2024 presidential primary election if it were held now.
Trump is well ahead of any other candidate. Mike Pence, the former vice-president, is on 12 per cent, while Nikki Haley, the former ambassador to the United Nations who has emerged as a Trump critic, is on 6 per cent – the same as Trump’s son, Donald Jr.
If senior Republicans thought Trump’s acquittal would draw a line under his presidency, they appear to be wrong.
Mitch McConnell, the Senate minority leader, yesterday indicated his willingness to intervene in Republican primary elections for the mid-terms in November next year.
The party requires a gain of just one seat to retake the Senate, and the key, McConnell said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal, is “getting candidates who can actually win in November” suggesting the party leadership may move to block some candidates from the Trump wing.
Despite voting for Trump’s acquittal, McConnell said he “is practically and morally responsible for inducing a mob to storm the Capitol on January 6”.
Republican senators who voted to convict are finding that grassroots supporters are still fervently supportive of Trump. Three of them – Richard Burr, Bill Cassidy and Pat Toomey – have been censured by their local parties.
Another new poll indicates that American voters have tired of the two-party system. Almost two-thirds say the US needs a major third party, agreeing the Republicans and Democrats “do such a poor job representing the American people,” according to a Gallup poll.
The survey showed that 62 per cent of Americans believe a new party is needed, while 33 per cent said the two established parties did an “adequate” job of representing the public’s views.
The Times
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