Only 4 in 10 U.S. voters say former President Donald Trump is likely to get a fair trial in New York City, Rasmussen Reports found.
A total of 51% of voters say it’s not likely Trump can get a fair trial in the current case brought forth by Manhattan Democrat District Attorney Alvin Bragg, according to the Rasmussen Reports results.
Among that majority of voters, 31% say a fair trial is not at all likely.
Opening statements began Monday in the first-ever criminal trial of a former U.S. president. Trump is accused of falsifying business records to pay to an adult film actress to remain quiet about an alleged affair before the 2016 election.
Rasmussen asked voters, "How likely is it that Trump will be able to get a fair trial in New York City?"
Just 42% say it's likely Trump will be able to get a fair trial, and that included only 27% saying it’s very likely, according to the Rasmussen Reports results.
Among people who voted for Trump in 2020, only 15% say it’s likely the former president will get a fair trial in New York City. Biden voters, though, say the opposite, with 73% answering it's likely Trump will get a fair trial.
Trump repeatedly has called Bragg's prosecution part of a politically motivated "witch hunt" by Democrats trying to boost President Joe Biden's chances of being reelected.
Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, is expected to oppose Biden in the November election.
Rasmussen asked voters whether they agreed with Trump that the prosecution is part of a witch hunt.
A total of 54% agree — with 41% strongly agreeing — in saying the New York case is a witch hunt, Rasmussen found.
Only 40% say the trial is not part of a witch hunt, including 31% who strongly disagree with that description.
A total of 85% of Republicans, 25% of Democrats and 54% of unaffiliated voters at least somewhat agree with Trump that the New York prosecution is part of a witch hunt.
Asked how closely they've been following news about the trial, 74% of voters say they have been following news about it, including 33% who’ve been following very closely.
In a party breakdown, 42% of Republicans, 34% of Democrats and 22% of unaffiliated voters have followed news about the trial very closely.
Among all likely voters who say they've followed news about the Trump trial very closely, 57% agree with the former president's description that the prosecution is part of a witch hunt.
The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey was conducted April 16-18 among 1,126 likely voters. The margin of sampling error is plus/minus 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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