Poll: two-thirds of MAGA would support a sex abuser

While a divided America struggles to come to terms with the latest version of our national identity, a recent poll conducted by POLITICO found that President Donald Trump's MAGA base is the most loyal group of voters.

Faced with every type of hypothetical misbehavior, and criminal behavior, they're willing to support GOP candidates who support their worldview.

First, let's put the poll in perspective. The questions were meant to gauge how loyal various voters were to their party, not to suss out who among us is most lax in morals.

Then, the results: Two-thirds of self-identified MAGA Trump voters say they would continue supporting a GOP candidate accused of sexual assault. Seventy-two percent of MAGA Trump voters say they would stick with a GOP candidate accused of domestic violence, and 70% would still cast their ballot for a candidate who made an anti-Semitic remark.

By comparison, 40% of voters who backed former Vice President Kamala Harris in 2024 would continue backing a Democratic candidate accused of sexual assault, Politico found, while 39% percent of Harris voters say they’d stick with a Democrat accused of domestic violence, and 50% would stay with a candidate who had posted an anti-Semitic remark.

Overall, the poll discovered that MAGA Trump voters are more loyal than the rest of the electorate across every hypothetical scandal tested, showcasing a reshaped partisan loyalty influenced by Trump. It helps explain how when many pundits saw a man beset by scandals in 2024, largely unelectable, the base saw something different.

And that has a potential effect on the upcoming 2026 midterm cycle.

The poll discovered that Americans, including both Republicans and Democrats, are generally tolerant of scandals among politicians, with near-majorities willing to stand by candidates through various hypothetical scandals.

But here's the overall difference. Call it the Trump effect, if you will. "The New York Times can publish a yearslong investigative report into the unprecedented levels of corruption in the Trump admin, and all Trump has to do is say 'fake news' to be absolved of responsibility," one Redditor wrote about the poll.

The same isn't true for the Democrats, not at least for any candidate they've tried to run so far.

"Harris 2024 voters, however, drew a line," Politico wrote of poll results. "Facing some scandals, such as a Democratic candidate accepting gifts from lobbyists or accused of domestic violence or sexual assault, more Harris voters would either stay home or vote Republican than stick with their party’s nominee."