Hawley, Cruz see approval ratings dip in wake of Capitol riot: poll

Approval ratings for GOP Sens. Ted Cruz (Texas) and Josh Hawley (Mo.) have dipped in the wake of the violent riot on Capitol earlier this month, according to a new poll. 

Among all voters in their home states, Hawley’s approval rating dropped 6 points between Jan. 6 and Monday, according to Morning Consult polling released Friday. Cruz’s approval rating with voters dropped 3 points in the same time period. 

Both senators also saw a dip in approval ratings with Republicans in their home states. Hawley’s approval rating dipped 9 points among Missouri Republicans to 63 percent, while Cruz’s dipped 5 points to 76 percent among Texas Republicans. 

Cruz and Hawley have faced backlash for their role in challenging the Electoral College vote during the certification process in Congress on the same day of the Capitol riot, which left five people dead. 

Seven Senate Democrats on Thursday called on the Ethics Committee to open up an investigation into the two Republican senators and specifically whether their objections to the Electoral College results violated the chamber’s ethics rules.

Both senators have denounced the violence that broke out, but have stood by their decisions to object to the Electoral College results from Arizona and Pennsylvania.

Hawley called the requested probe a “flagrant attempt to exact partisan revenge.” 

The Morning Consult’s Political Intelligence polling was conducted among about 3,000 voters in Texas and 1,000 voters in Missouri. The polling before Jan. 6 was conducted between Dec. 27 and Jan. 5, and after from Jan. 9 to Jan. 18.