The Senate today begins its second impeachment trial for former president Donald Trump, this time accused by the House of Representatives of inciting an insurrection against the government.
In a representative democracy like ours, it is fitting to ask: what do the people want their legislators to do? Convict, or acquit?
The latest polling data from Gallup shows that 52% of Americans want the Senate to convict the president. 45% are opposed. This is a big increase over the last trial; the seven-point margin in favor of conviction now contrasts with a five-point margin against during Trump’s first trial, as shown below:
It is worth noting that these numbers differ from other polling. FiveThirtyEight’s average of impeachment polls in 2020 showed that, by 50% to 45%, a clear plurality of voters wanted Trump convicted of the charges:
