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Justified or unfair? What Americans think about Trump's indictments

A new poll asks Americans whether they think Trump acted illegally.
Justified or unfair? What Americans think about Trump's indictments
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With the latest charges coming out of Georgia, former President Donald Trump has been indicted four times.

In Georgia and Washington, D.C., Trump was charged with interfering in the 2020 election. He was charged in Florida over his mishandling of classified documents, and in New York for falsifying business records in a hush-money scheme. 

As legal woes mount, the 2024 presidential election — in which the former president is a top GOP candidate — is fast approaching. 

So what do Americans think about the indictments?

SEE MORE: 'Sounds rigged to me': Trump reacts to indictment in Georgia

U.S. adults appear to be split down the middle, according to a new AP-NORC poll

About half of Americans believe Trump acted illegally in his attempt to overturn the 2020 election results in Georgia, and 54% think his actions following his loss threatened democracy, the poll found.

But when looking at political affiliation, it's clear that people are divided among party lines; 85% of Democrats say Trump acted illegally in his attempt to overturn Georgia's results in 2020, but only 16% of Republicans agreed. About 26% of Republicans say the former president's actions in Georgia were unethical, but not illegal, and 31% think he did nothing wrong. 

The results were pretty much the same when it came to whether Americans thought Trump illegally mishandled classified documents in his Florida home; 53% of adults overall say yes, 85% of Democrats agree; but only 18% of Republicans think he acted illegally. 

A slightly lesser percentage, 47%, say Trump's actions in the Jan. 6 riots at the Capitol were illegal. About 80% of Democrats say that was illegal, while 46% of Republicans claim he did nothing wrong. 

The numbers are slightly different when it comes to allegations Trump covered up hush-money payments to an adult film star who said she had an affair with him.

Only 34% of Americans think that was illegal, and 38% claim it was unethical, but not illegal. About 55% of Democrats say it was illegal, and 43% of Republicans say it was only unethical. 

Trump is required to surrender in Georgia by noon on Aug. 25.

SEE MORE: What do Trump's GOP competitors think about latest indictment?


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