Americans aren’t happy about election results
Poll finds just 25% are pleased Biden won, while 34% happy Trump lost
More Americans are happy that President Donald Trump lost the election than are happy that president-elect Joe Biden won, a new poll found.
The Monmouth University poll of 810 adults, conducted Nov. 12-16, found 34 per cent of respondents were happy that Trump lost the election while 25 per cent were happy about the idea of Biden becoming president.
The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.
The poll found a closer divide among respondents who were “satisfied” or “happy” about Trump’s loss or Biden’s win — with 52 per cent “satisfied” or “happy” Trump lost, compared to 51 per cent who answered the same about Biden’s win.
It also broke the answers down along partisan lines. Seventy-four per cent of Democrats were happy Trump lost, while 57 per cent were happy about Biden becoming president.
Among Republican respondents, 4 per cent were happy about Trump’s loss and 4 per cent were happy about Biden’s win.
The poll also found more Americans expressed anger about Biden’s win than Trump’s loss — with 15 per cent saying they were angry about Biden winning, compared to 10 per cent who were angry over Trump losing.
Meanwhile, 29 per cent said they were “dissatisfied” with Biden’s win, while 28 per cent said the same about Trump’s loss.
The president and his allies have lodged unfounded claims of voter fraud and made baseless attempts to challenge the outcome of the election.
But 60 per cent of respondents in the poll said Biden won “fair and square.”
Additionally, a Politico/Morning Consult poll of 1,987 registered voters conducted Nov. 6-9 with a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points found the majority of respondents, 60 per cent, thought the election was “free and fair.”
Elections officials representing both parties have said there’s been no evidence of widespread fraud.
But Trump has refused to concede victory to Biden, and his administration has been stalling the transfer of power, preventing Biden’s transition team from accessing important information — including on national security and the coronavirus pandemic — it needs to prepare for him to take office on Jan. 20.
Forty-six per cent of respondents in the Monmouth poll said they “strongly disapprove” of the way Trump is “handling the transition process” while another 15 per cent said they “somewhat disapprove.” Another 20 per cent “strongly approve” and 11 per cent “somewhat approve.”