A majority of Americans think Trump's impeachment trial in the Senate should happen immediately, a new Insider poll shows
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A majority of Americans think President Donald Trump's trial in the Senate should begin immediately, a recent Insider survey found.
Of the 1,059 respondents, 55% said the trial should happen before Trump's term ends on Wednesday, though they differed on the timing of a vote on whether to convict him.
About 17% of respondents said the Senate should wait to hold the trial until after Joe Biden begins his term.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell doesn't plan to reconvene the Senate for a trial before Biden takes office on Wednesday, The Washington Post recently reported.
A majority of Americans think President Donald Trump's trial in the Senate should begin immediately, a new Insider poll found.
On Wednesday, the House of Representatives voted 232-197 to impeach Trump for his role in inciting an insurrection at the US Capitol, making him the first US president to be impeached twice. No House Republican voted to impeach Trump in 2019, but 10 GOP members broke rank to do so on Wednesday.
It is now the responsibility of the Senate to vote on whether to convict Trump.
In a recent survey, Insider asked whether the Senate should have a trial before or after Trump leaves office. A majority of respondents told Insider that the trial should happen as soon as possible.
Here's a breakdown of those responses:
27.8% of respondents said that the Senate's trial should take place immediately and that it should vote before Trump leaves office.
27.8% of respondents said that the trial should happen immediately but that the Senate should take the time it needs before voting, even if it extends into the Biden administration.
17.4% of respondents said the trial should take place at some point in the Biden administration.
27% of respondents said they did not know.
This analysis comes from a SurveyMonkey Audience poll taken on Wednesday and Thursday. The poll collected 1,059 respondents who were asked whether the Capitol siege was justified, whether Trump was responsible for it, and more.
Though most respondents in Insider's poll indicated they wanted the Senate trial to immediately begin, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell isn't planning to reconvene the Senate before Trump leaves office next week, The Washington Post reported.
Several outlets have independently reported that McConnell is in favor of voting against Trump. Only one Republican, Sen. Mitt Romney, voted to convict Trump in his impeachment trial in early 2020.
In the unlikely event Trump is convicted before his term expires on Wednesday, he will be removed from office. Should he be convicted at any point, a simple majority vote in the Senate could bar him from holding a federal office again.
SurveyMonkey Audience polls from a national sample balanced by census data of age and gender. Respondents are incentivized to complete surveys through charitable contributions. Generally speaking, digital polling tends to skew toward people with access to the internet. SurveyMonkey Audience doesn't try to weight its sample based on race or income. Polling data collected 1,059 respondents January 13 and 14, 2021. All polls carried approximately a 3-percentage-point margin of error individually.
Expanded Coverage Module: capitol-siege-module
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