A GOP pollster found that most Trump voters identify as Republicans rather than as supporters of the president.
The numbers: Frank Luntz, a Republican political consultant and former advisor to the George W. Bush White House, conducted a poll of 800 Trump voters over the weekend.
- He found that 73% of those polled identified as “Republican-first” voters as opposed to the 27% who were “Trump-first” voters.
- Nevertheless, 51% thought Trump should run for president again, and 91% said they would vote for him again were the election held today.
Brothers in arms: The chaotic events of Trump’s final weeks in office have split the Republican party, as some GOP politicians distance themselves from the president while others continue to back his agenda.
- Republicans from the establishment wing of the party, like Sen. Pat Toomey, have criticized colleagues for entertaining claims of election fraud, which culminated in objections to last week’s congressional certification of the Electoral College vote.
- On the other hand, Trump’s surrogates have vowed to primary Republicans who did not object to the certification.
- A New York Times report published Tuesday suggested Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, outraged by last week’s attack on the U.S. Capitol, privately supports impeaching the president.
Counterpoint: An Axios-Ipsos poll released on Wednesday found that most Republicans back Trump over McConnell.
- According to the survey of 1,019 Americans, only 17% of Republicans believe the president should be immediately removed from office.
