- A New Washington Post/University of Maryland poll shows only 14% of voters think Trump is 'responsible' for the January 6, 2021 Capitol riot
- Comes amid rulings from Colorado and Maine seeking to keep Trump off the ballot in their states over the Constitution's 'insurrection' clause
- The same poll sees a decline from December 2021 to December 2023 among those who think President Joe Biden's 2020 election victory was 'legitimate'
Americans are increasingly less likely to believe that President Joe Biden legitimately won the 2020 election — while even more Republicans no longer hold Donald Trump responsible for the attack on the Capitol.
The latest poll just before New Year's shows that 72 percent of Republicans believe it is time to move past the January 6, 2021 Capitol riots, and only 14 percent think Trump bears responsibility for the events that day.
It comes as states step up their challenges to Trump's candidacy in the 2024 election by claiming his involvement in the insurrection disqualifies him from running for president again.
Meanwhile, Trump remains the distant favorite in the GOP race with less than two weeks until the Iowa caucuses kick off the Jan. 15 primaries.
A new Washington Post/University of Maryland poll finds that only 14 percent of voters consider Donald Trump “responsible” for the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riot, amid statements from states trying to get him off the ballot because of the 'insurrection' clause of the Constitution
In 2021, 60 percent of Americans said Trump was responsible for the January 6 attacks, but that dropped to 53% two years later. according to a Washington Post/University of Maryland poll.
At the same time, the number of Americans who believe Biden's 2020 victory was legitimate is also declining as time goes by.
The previous poll from December 17 to 19, 2021 shows an 8 percent drop between then and now among Republicans who believe Biden won his seat in the Oval Office fairly.
But Democrats and independent voters also saw declines of 3 percent and 6 percent, respectively, between December 2021 and the last poll from December 14 to 18, 2023.
Only 14 percent of Democrats say it's “time to move on” from the Capitol riot — but nearly half of independents, 46%, say the same.
The results follow the ruling by the Colorado Supreme Court and the Maine Secretary of State that Trump cannot appear at their respective states' presidential primaries due to his role on January 6, 2021.
The same poll sees a decline from December 2021 to December 2023 across all parties in those who think President Joe Biden's 2020 election victory was 'legitimate'
A whopping 72 percent of Americans say it's “time to move on” from the attack on the Capitol — despite a slew of lawsuits against Trump over the day's events and states trying to use it to stop him to run for president in 2024
Colorado's 4-3 decision said Trump cannot run for public office under Clause 3 of the 14th Amendment because he “engaged in an insurrection” and removed him from the primary ballot.
But Republicans in the state immediately challenged the ruling, appealing to the U.S. Supreme Court and pointing to the fact that Trump has not been charged with insurrection. This marked a delay or pause on the Colorado decision — meaning Trump will remain on the ballot unless the Supreme Court sides with the lower court.
Maine's decision will also likely face a challenge from Trump.
Michigan — a red swing state that is far more important to a Trump victory in 2024 than Colorado or Maine — decided last month to keep the ex-president on the state's ballot.
Independent voters remain largely unchanged in their marginal 6 percent view that Trump is indeed responsible for the January 6 attacks. Between 2021 and 2023, the number of those who believe he was to blame fell by just 1 percent.
But 6 percent fewer now think Biden's 2020 victory was legitimate.