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Only 52% of conservatives think Ruth Bader Ginsburg's seat should be filled before the election, according to a new Insider poll

mitch mcconnell scotus insider poll 52 percent
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.
  • Only 52% of self-identified conservatives say they're in favor of a Supreme Court nominee getting a vote before Election Day, according to a new Insider SurveyMonkey audience poll.

  • The poll found a strong but limited desire to get a replacement for Ruth Bader Ginsburg confirmed ahead of the election, with 73% of "very conservative" respondents wanting a pick "as soon as possible."

  • Meanwhile, 13% of moderate conservatives and 26% of slight conservatives said it would be best for the winner of the election to make the pick.

  • Despite Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell calling for a confirmation vote ahead of Election Day, new polling data shows that such a strategy is only popular among the base, and not among conservatives writ large.

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A new Insider SurveyMonkey audience poll found just 52% of self-identified conservatives in favor of a Supreme Court nominee getting a vote before Election Day.

The rest, mainly among those identifying as either moderately or slightly conservative, answered that they would prefer for the next Senate and president to decide on a new justice, or at least for President Donald Trump to wait until after Nov. 3 and fill the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg's seat before the inauguration.

Ginsburg's open seat should be filled "as soon as possible" ahead of the election among 73% of those who identify as "very conservative," according to the poll's 1,000-plus respondents.

Thirteen percent of moderate conservatives and 26% of slight conservatives said it would be best for the winner of the election to make the pick, with a vote coming to the floor in the new Senate post-inauguration.

Senate Republicans have largely followed the lead of Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, of Kentucky, in pushing for a replacement for Ginsburg ahead of the election. This, despite McConnnell denying President Barack Obama the same opportunity much earlier in the 2016 election cycle when Justice Antonia Scalia died.

McConnell has argued his approach is not hypocritical, citing the rarity of a president and Congressional majorities of different parties back in 2016.

The new polling data, however, shows that such a strategy is only popular among the most fervent conservatives in the base, and not among conservatives writ large.

The Democrats' only hope of keeping McConnell from naming a conservative replacement lies among a handful of GOP senators who could break ranks and keep the seat open.

SurveyMonkey Audience polls from a national sample balanced by census data of age and gender. Respondents are incentivized to complete surveys through charitable contributions. Generally speaking, digital polling tends to skew toward people with access to the internet. SurveyMonkey Audience doesn't try to weight its sample based on race or income. This survey had a total 1,017 respondents, a margin of error plus or minus 3 percentage points with a 95% confidence level. Poll conducted September 18-19, 2020.

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