Scripps News Poll: Most Expect Post-Election Day Violence

Nearly two-thirds of Americans believe some form of political violence will occur after November's election, a Scripps News/Ipsos poll released Thursday found.

The national survey of 1,028 adults aged 18 and over conducted Oct. 18-20 found that 62% — including 70% of Democrats and 59% of Republicans — said it is very or somewhat likely that there will be violence related to political outcomes following Election Day on Nov. 5. The poll has a margin of error of +/- 3.3 percentage points.

Also, 51% said they strongly or somewhat support using the military to stop any threat of potential violence around Election Day, with 30% strongly or somewhat opposed.

Still, 63% said they were very or somewhat confident that all votes will be accurately counted in the election, with 77% saying they were willing to accept if their preferred candidate loses. But 18% of Republicans and 8% of Democrats said they would not commit to accepting the results.

The poll found that 84% believe in-person voting on Election Day is very or somewhat secure from fraud, but the numbers drop significantly regarding mail-in voting or using drop boxes to collect ballots.

Just 54% believe mail-in voting is very or somewhat secure from fraud, including 38% of Republicans and 51% of independents. About one-third of Republicans and 49% of independents say ballot drop boxes are secure from fraud.

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