Poll: Americans almost evenly split on Trump sending federal agents to cities

Americans almost evenly split on President Trump sending federal agents to cities, a new Hill-HarrisX poll finds.

Fifty-three percent of the registered voters in the July 26-27 survey said they support sending federal agents to major cities in order to protect federal property despite the mayors of those cities not making a request for such action.

By contrast, 47 percent of voters opposed the Trump administration’s move.

The survey follows President Trump’s decision to deploy federal agents to Portland, Ore., as ongoing protests targeted federal property.

The survey fell heavily along party lines with 76 percent of Republican respondents saying they agreed with the use of federal troops to protect federal property while 77 percent of Democrats said they disagree with the move. Fifty-five percent of independent voters said they disagree with the move.

The survey found 55 percent of white voters agree with federal agents and officers being deployed into major cities to protect federal property.

Twenty-one percent of Black voters said they oppose the move along with 33 percent of Hispanic voters.

The Hill-HarrisX poll was conducted online among 948 registered voters between July 26-27. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.18 percentage points.

—Gabriela Schulte