Your support helps us to tell the story
This election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.
The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.
Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.
The majority of American voters believe Donald Trump will not accept the 2024 presidential election result if he loses to Kamala Harris, according to a new poll.
The CNN poll, conducted by SSRS, found that, if the former president loses next week, only 30 percent of all registered voters believe he will accept the result and concede to his opponent.
By contrast, 73 percent believe Harris will accept the election result if she loses.
Zeroing in on sentiment from Harris and Trump supporters, the poll found that 95 percent of Harris supporters do not believe Trump will concede if he loses. A majority (57 percent) of Trump supporters, however, believe he will concede and accept the result if he loses.
The poll also found the vast majority of American voters generally support the principle that candidates have an obligation to accept the election result. It found that 88 percent said losing candidates are obligated to concede once the results are certified in every state, compared to 12 percent who said they are not.
Among Trump supporters, 20 percent said they do not believe losing candidates have an obligation to accept the result compared to 3 percent among Harris supporters.
The poll also found that a majority of all voters have little or no confidence in the Supreme Court if legal challenges relating to the result end up reaching the nation’s highest court.
The polls have tightened as Election Day looms. The latest national New York Times poll has Harris leading by less than one percentage point.
Trump is already trying to sow doubts in the outcome of the election.
Last week, he claimed he’s winning in the three key swing states of Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania while speaking at a rally with Turning Point Action, an organization founded by far-right political activist Charlie Kirk.
“But I’m not supposed to say that,” Trump said. “Pretend it’s close, everybody has to. They’re afraid that if you hear that they’re not going to vote.”
“I said, ‘Well, it’s a double-edged sword.’ If we’re leading by a lot, they won’t think about cheating as much,” he continued, referring to his often-repeated false claim that Joe Biden did not legitimately win the 2020 presidential election.
“We’ve got to make these elections honorable and honest, and we’re going to do it.”