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GOP Likely to Trust Trump, Not Election09/10 06:11
CHICAGO (AP) -- For Christopher Pugh, the 2020 election was a turning point.
He already distrusted the government. But as he watched Fox News coverage in
the immediate aftermath of the election and read posts on Twitter, the social
media platform now known as X, that distrust grew. He now believes the
falsehood that the 2020 election was stolen and trusts few people other than
former President Donald Trump to deliver him news about election results.
"I trust Donald Trump, not the government," said the 38-year-old Republican
from Gulfport, Mississippi. "That's it."
While most Americans trust government-certified election results at least a
"moderate" amount, Republicans are more likely to trust Trump and his campaign,
according to a new survey from the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public
Affairs Research and USAFacts. Americans also are heading into the November
election with concerns about misinformation. Many have low trust that the
information they receive from presidential candidates -- particularly Trump,
but also Vice President Kamala Harris -- is based on factual information.
Trump continues to lie about the outcome of the 2020 election, saying it was
rigged against him even after dozens of his court challenges failed, reviews,
recounts and audits in battleground states all affirmed President Joe Biden's
win, and Trump's own attorney general said there was no evidence of widespread
fraud. Despite no evidence of any widespread fraud, a 2023 poll found that most
Republicans believe Biden was not legitimately elected president.
As Trump runs as the Republican candidate for the third time, he also is
signaling that he can only lose through widespread fraud. Over the weekend he
threatened to prosecute those "involved in unscrupulous behavior" this election
should he win in November.
"The only way they can beat us is to cheat," Trump said at a Las Vegas rally
in June.
The recent findings from the AP-NORC survey show that a significant chunk of
Trump's supporters might be more inclined to believe what he says about the
upcoming election results than they are to trust government certifications of
election results.
About two-thirds of Republicans trust Trump's campaign at least a moderate
amount to provide accurate information about the results of the 2024 election,
while only about half say the same about the official certifications of
results, the survey found. By contrast, about 9 in 10 Democrats trust the
government certification at least a moderate amount, and an overwhelming
majority, 82%, also have at least a moderate amount of trust in Harris and her
campaign.
Most Americans -- around 7 in 10 -- trust the government certifications of
election results at least a moderate amount, according to the survey.
Majorities also trust national and local TV news networks, as well as local or
national newspapers, to provide accurate information about the outcome of this
year's presidential election.
Danielle Almeida, a 45-year-old Democrat from Briarcliff Manor, New York,
said she trusts government-certified election results and finds it alarming
that some Americans don't.
"In order to have a democracy, we have to trust the system and the results
of our elections," she said, adding that she thinks Trump "does not care about
fact-checking because he believes his supporters don't care, either."
Americans are less likely to trust the campaigns overall -- compared to
sources such as the government and the media -- but they have a higher level of
trust in Harris and her campaign than in Trump and his campaign to provide
accurate information about the outcome of the election. About half have at
least a "moderate" amount of trust in Harris and her campaign. By contrast,
about 4 in 10 have at least a moderate amount of trust in Trump and his
campaign.
Some Republicans' distrust of election results started far before the 2020
election.
Richard Baum, 60, a conservative independent from Odessa, Texas, said his
suspicions began in the 2000 U.S. presidential race between George W. Bush and
Al Gore. After Bush won by a slim margin, "hanging chads" became an unlikely
symbol of a disputed presidential election as small anomalies common in
elections ballooned into major national controversies.
"There was some stuff there that didn't seem right that made a lot of doubts
in my mind about if you can trust the government," Baum said.
Baum said he would trust election results only if voting took place on only
a single day, early voting and mail-in ballots were banned and photo IDs were
required at all polling places.
Many Americans doubt the veracity of both presidential candidates' campaign
messages, but skepticism about Trump's campaign is higher, the USAFacts/AP-NORC
survey found.
About 6 in 10 Americans believe that Trump's campaign messages are "rarely"
or "never" based on factual information, compared to 45% who say that about
Harris' campaign messages.
Many Americans also say it's hard to discern fact from fiction when it comes
to the candidates. Slightly less than half of Americans say it's "very easy" or
"somewhat easy" to find factual information about the candidates and their
positions, and only about one-third say it's easy to know if what candidates
are saying is true or not.
About 6 in 10 Americans say it's easy for them to understand the difference
between fact and opinion when it comes to information about the upcoming
presidential election, but only about 4 in 10 say it's easy to know whether
information is true or not.
Americans are, however, more confident about factual information related to
election logistics: About 7 in 10 Americans say it's easy to find information
about how to register to vote, and about 6 in 10 say it's easy to find
information about how to cast their ballot.
Michele Martin, a 56-year-old Pennsylvania Democrat, said she is "very
concerned" about misinformation from politicians but finds it much easier to
access basic voter information.
"It's online. It's mailed to you. It's not hard to find," she said.
About 8 in 10 Americans say that when it comes to getting information about
the government, the spread of misinformation is a "major problem." That is
essentially unchanged from when the question was asked in 2020.
Lisa Kuda, a 57-year-old Republican from Palm Harbor, Florida, said she gets
most of her news from social media and friends. She said she feels alienated
from most news sources other than Fox News.
"Misinformation is everywhere," she said. "It's really difficult to find
information about candidates."
When Americans see news about the election and want to find out whether it's
true, 40% say they turn to an internet search first. Much smaller shares --
around 1 in 10 for each -- say they first check cable news, national TV news or
social media.
Baum, from Texas, said he finds it difficult to easily access information
about candidates because he believes social media platforms "are censoring
conservative ideologies." He also doesn't trust Google and instead turns to
conservative networks and podcasts such One America News and conservative
podcasters to fact-check claims he's unsure about.
Almeida's process looks much different. She starts with a Google search and
wades through multiple articles from news outlets such as The New York Times
and NBC News, making note of any differences. If multiple articles have the
same information, she said, she's more likely to trust it.
"Misinformation is a huge problem," she said. "You have to take time to do
your research."
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