Poll: Most GOP voters think 2020 election was illegitimate, but lawmakers should prioritize other issues
Two-thirds of GOP voters don't believe President Biden won the 2020 election fair and square, suggesting former President Donald Trump's false claims of widespread voter fraud still have momentum, a CBS News/YouGov poll released Sunday found.
At the same time, however, most of those voters think Republican lawmakers should be focusing their energy on proposing "important legislation." In fact, supporting election fraud claims was found to be the least important issue in the survey, trailing economic policy and "culture and values," as well.
The sentiment was also reflected in questions about Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.). An overwhelming majority of respondents backed her ouster, but the most popular reason given was that Cheney wasn't on message with the rest of the party, rather than her thoughts on the 2020 election.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Finally, there are more Republican voters who think the party should be expanding the base by emphasizing "policies and ideas" than there are those who believe lawmakers should prioritize "pushing for changes to state voting rules."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
11 extra-special holiday gifts for everyone on your listThe Week Recommends Jingle their bells with the right present
-
‘Furious Minds: The Making of the MAGA New Right’ by Laura K. Field and ‘The Dream Factory: London’s First Playhouse and the Making of William Shakespeare’ by Daniel SwiftFeature An insider’s POV on the GOP and the untold story of Shakespeare’s first theater
-
How to shop smarter with a grocery budgetThe Explainer No more pushing your cart down the aisles on autopilot
-
Benin thwarts coup attemptSpeed Read President Patrice Talon condemned an attempted coup that was foiled by the West African country’s army
-
Femicide: Italy’s newest crimeThe Explainer Landmark law to criminalise murder of a woman as an ‘act of hatred’ or ‘subjugation’ but critics say Italy is still deeply patriarchal
-
Brazil’s Bolsonaro behind bars after appeals run outSpeed Read He will serve 27 years in prison
-
Americans traveling abroad face renewed criticism in the Trump eraThe Explainer Some of Trump’s behavior has Americans being questioned
-
UN Security Council backs Trump’s Gaza peace planSpeed Read The United Nations voted 13-0 to endorse President Donald Trump’s 20-point plan to withdraw Israeli troops from Gaza
-
Chile picks leftist, far-right candidates for runoff voteSpeed Read The presidential runoff election will be between Jeannette Jara, a progressive from President Gabriel Boric’s governing coalition, and far-right former congressman José Antonio Kast
-
Venezuela mobilizes as top US warship nearsSpeed Read The largest and most advanced US aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, has entered the Caribbean and put Venezuela on high alert
-
Nigeria confused by Trump invasion threatSpeed Read Trump has claimed the country is persecuting Christians
