New Poll Shows If Republicans View Trump As Responsible For Insurrection

Fewer Republicans believe former President Donald Trump bears responsibility in relation to the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol carried out by his supporters, according to a new poll released by the Washington Post and the University of Maryland published on Tuesday (January 2).

An estimated 14% of Republican respondents said Trump bears responsibility, which was a significant decrease from the 27% reported in the initial poll conducted in December 2021. Additionally, 86% of Democrat respondents said Trump bears responsibility, which was less than the 92% reported in 2021.

Independent voters, however, had similar responses three years later, with about 56% of respondents blaming the former president "a great deal" or "a good amount" for the Capitol attacks, decreasing by just one percentage point from the 2021 poll. In total, just over 50% of respondents believe Trump bears either "a great deal" or "a good amount" of responsibility in relation to the insurrection.

Trump is currently facing two criminal indictments in relation to his attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election, which he lost to President Joe Biden. One indictment brought on by Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith charges Trump with conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of and attempt to obstruct and official proceeding and conspiracy against rights. Another in Georgia brought on by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis charging the former president with racketeering, conspiracy and other charges based on potential election interference in the state.

Trump still remains the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination with an estimated 61.2% average in the 2024 primary polls, according to FiveThirtyEight.com.