More than three-quarters of Americans say politics played at least some role in last week’s indictment of former President Donald Trump — but a clear majority also back the legal action by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, according to a new poll out Monday.
The CNN/SSRS survey found that 60% of Americans approve of the 76-year-old being indicted in connection with a hush-money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels days before the 2016 election, including 37% who strongly approve.
Overall, 40% disapprove of the indictment, including 25% who strongly disapprove.
When asked how big a part politics played in the indictment, a whopping 76% said it played some part, with 52% saying it was a major reason and 23% saying it played a minor part.
Only 14% said they thought politics had no part in the decision, while 10% said they weren’t sure.
The poll found Americans were evenly split on how the indictment would affect US democracy, with 31% saying it would be strengthened and the same percentage saying it would be weakened.
A poll released Monday found that 60% of Americans approve of former President Donald Trump’s indictment — even though 76% believe politics played a part in it. AFP via Getty ImagesAnother 23% predicted the indictment would have no effect on the American system, while 15% said they weren’t sure.
Democrats were mostly unified in their support for the indictment — with 94% approving and 6% disapproving.
Among Republicans, on the other hand, 79% disapprove of the Trump charges while just 21% approve.
Independents largely agree with the indictment, with 62% in favor and 38% opposed.
A Manhattan grand jury indicted Trump March 30 in connection to a $130,000 payment made to Daniels in the weeks before the 2016 vote.
Follow The Post’s coverage on Trump’s indictment
Trump’s then-personal attorney and “fixer,” Michael Cohen, paid Daniels to ensure her silence about a sexual encounter she claimed to have had with Trump a decade earlier.
The 45th president has denied both the affair and the payment.
Despite broad support for the indictment, only 37% of those polled said they thought Trump’s actions surrounding the payment to Daniels constituted illegal activity. Another 33% said they were unethical but not illegal, 10% said Trump did nothing wrong at all, and 20% said they weren’t sure about Trump’s actions.
Trump, his allies and supporters have been attacking Bragg over the indictment, calling it a “political prosecution” and “election interference” because Trump is the front-runner among Republican candidates for the 2024 nomination.
Former President Donald Trump gives a thumbs-up sign in New York on Aug. 10, 2022. GC ImagesSome Republican House members have also demanded that Bragg testify at congressional hearings about his reasoning for investigating and indicting Trump.
A plurality of Americans — 38% — disapprove of GOP members wanting to probe Bragg, while 35% agree with the Republican action and 27% aren’t sure.
Americans across a variety of demographic groups approved of the indictment, except for the 58% of white non-college graduates who disapproved.
The largest proportion of any demographic group to approve of the indictment was the 75% of people of color who backed Bragg’s decision.
The poll surveyed 1,048 Americans between March 31 and April 1 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.






