Majority of Americans think January 6 attack threatened democracy
Nearly a year after the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, a strong majority of Americans condemn it and believe former President Donald Trump is at least partially to blame. But partisan splits have hardened over time, with Republicans still largely backing Trump’s version of events, a new ABC/Ipsos poll finds.
An overwhelming majority (72%) of Americans believe the people involved in the attack on the Capitol were “threatening democracy,” while 1 in 4 Americans believes that the individuals involved were “protecting democracy.” Broken down by party identification, Democrats are nearly unanimous (96%) in believing that those involved in the attacks were threatening democracy. Republicans are more split, with 45% saying it was a threat and 52% saying those involved in the riot were “protecting democracy.”
The ABC/Ipsos poll, which was conducted by Ipsos in partnership with ABC News using Ipsos’ KnowledgePanel, also shows strongly aligned views among Democrats regarding Trump’s responsibility for the attack, with 91% believing Trump bears either “a great deal” or “a good amount” of responsibility for it. On the other hand, a strong majority (78%) of Republicans believe the former president bears “just some” or no responsibility for the day’s events. [Continue reading…]