Tennesseans back Trump but remain undecided
Tennesseans want former President Donald Trump back in the White House next year more than anyone else, but nearly a third of Tennessee Republicans say the GOP is headed in the wrong direction, an exclusive Tennessean/siena College poll has found.
The survey found 49% of respondents said they would like former Republican President Donald Trump to be the next President of the United States, while 20% said they would like incumbent Democratic President Joe Biden to remain in office for four more years. Another 7% said they would prefer someone else, and 24% of respondents were undecided.
Tennessee is a deeply red state politically, and Trump carried the Volunteer State in 2016 and 2020 with just over 60% of the vote.
Trump may even draw support from some Democrats, the poll found.
While no respondents who identified as a Republican said they'd support Biden, 9% of respondents who identified themselves as Democrats said they would support Trump, the survey found.
Siena College Research Institute surveyed 805 Tennessee residents between Nov. 5 to 10 for the wide-ranging poll, which asked Tennesseans about everything from hot-button political issues to lifestyle choices and quality of life.
The poll surveyed a cross-section of Tennesseans, both registered voters and those who are not. The largest group, 45%, identified as independent or “other,” with 20% identifying as Democrats and 34% as Republicans. The poll also surveyed political ideology, with 17% of respondents identifying as liberal, 38% as moderate and 42% as conservative.
The survey has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.8 percentage points.
Here are other key finding about Trump, Biden and national issues.
Independents, evangelicals support Trump over Biden
Evangelicals in Tennessee remain strongly supportive of Trump, with 60% of respondents who identified as evangelical supporting the former president. Just 14% of evangelicals support Biden, 7% want someone else, and 20% remain undecided.
Meanwhile, few independent voters support Biden: only 13% of independent respondents said they wanted the president reelected.
There's strong support for Trump (44%) among independents, but just as many (44%) want someone else, or remain undecided. A poll by the conservative Beacon Center of Tennessee found that spoiler candidates like independent Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. could eat away at Trump's lead, as he is more popular among Republicans and independents than Democrats.
Many Tennesseans remain undecided
With three months to go before Super Tuesday, about a quarter of respondents – 24% – remain undecided on their presidential preference.
Democrats were more likely to be undecided than respondents identifying as Republicans: 20% of Democrats said they did not know who they preferred, while only 12% of Republicans were undecided.
Younger respondents were more likely to be undecided, with 28% of respondents aged 18to 34 saying they are uncertain, and just 16% of those 55 and older.
Tennessee Republicans concerned by national GOP
Nearly a third of Tennessee Republicans disapprove of the direction the national Republican Party is headed: 29% of Republican respondents said the GOP is headed in the wrong direction, while 52% said it's on the right track. Another 19% were undecided.
College educated Republicans were less likely to approve of the national GOP: 54% of Republican respondents without a bachelors' degree or higher said the party is on the right track, while 43% of college-educated Republicans said the party is headed in the wrong direction.
More support for Israel than Ukraine
More Tennesseans think that the United States should provide additional military aid to Israel than support new aid for Ukraine, the poll found.
According to the survey, 56% of respondents support new military aid for Israel, and only 40% support new aid for Ukraine. Roughly 20% were undecided on each.
While support for aid to Israel was strong across party lines, significantly more respondents who identified themselves as Republicans (72%) were supportive. But a majority of Democrats (52%) also support new military aid to Israel. Among independents, 46% support new aid, 32% oppose, and 22% were undecided.
On Ukraine aid, it's a different story. Overall, Tennesseans are split 40% to 40% on whether to support new aid (20% are undecided), the poll found. But between political parties, far more Democrats (65%) supported new aid to Ukraine than Republicans do (35%). In fact, 52% of Republicans oppose new aid to Ukraine. Independents are more evenly split, with 41% opposing and 31% supporting new aid.
Younger Tennesseans likely to oppose border wall
A majority of Tennesseans support building a wall on the southern U.S. border with Mexico, the poll found, but support for a wall is divided significantly on party lines.
Overall, 57% of respondents said they support building a wall, while only 33% opposed, and 10% were undecided. No fewer than 88% of Republicans support building a wall, while only 8% oppose
it. Among Democrats, 72% oppose building a wall while 21% support it.
Young Tennesseans are more likely to oppose a wall at the border: 48% of respondents aged 18 to 34 opposed building a wall, while 37% in that age group support building a wall. Among Tennesseans aged 55 and older, support jumps to 69%, and only 26% oppose.
Vivian Jones covers state politics and government for The Tennessean. Reach her at vjones@tennessean.com.