Not only are Americans divided politically, most say they won’t accept the results of the 2024 presidential election.
According to an online poll conducted by the Angus Reid Institute, only one-in-three (32%) will believe the winner won fair and square in November if either current Democrats President Joe Biden is re-elected or if Republican front-runner Donald Trump returns for a second term.
The poll found only one-quarter of respondents are totally comfortable that the checks and balances of the election process will hold up.
However, another quarter say they have no confidence at all that voting will be free and fair, while one-third have little confidence.
For those who voted for Biden in 2020, one-third say they will not be confident with the results while four-in-five Trump voters in 2020 have their doubts.
Trump, who lost re-election four years ago, has repeated claims that the vote was “rigged” against him without any evidence.
For voters who checked a ballot for Trump in the past, 70% say they will only accept a Trump victory.
Nearly half (46%) of Biden’s backers say only his victory in November will be legitimate.
Meanwhile, 47% of respondents said the country cannot handle another four years of Trump while 43% disagreed with that sentiment.
Other findings include half of respondents saying the country may be heading toward authoritarianism, a notion equally believed by Democrats (50%) and Republicans (48%).
Also, a majority of past voters for Biden and Trump believe democracy will be weakened if their opponent wins the presidency in 2024.
The poll was conducted from Jan. 9-12 and the results were taken from 1,178 randomized adult Americans who are members of the Angus Reid Forum USA.
