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If Republicans Think They Won Over U.S. Voters With the Brett Kavanaugh Fight, New Poll Suggests Otherwise
Whoah.
A majority of Americans are opposed to newly-confirmed Associate Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, a CNN poll released on Monday shows.
The survey, conducted by Social Science Research Solutions, found that 51 percent of the public oppose Kavanaugh's confirmation, while only 41 percent approve.
That's a 12 percent increase from last month when Kavanaugh's disapproval rating was clocked at 39 percent.
Kavanaugh's nomination was rocked by multiple accusations of sexual assault dating back to his time in high school and college, and the poll indicates that most of the country believes Kavanaugh's accusers' stories over the judge's defense.
CNN explains:
"All told, 52% of Americans say they believe the women accusing Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct over the judge's denials of those accusations (38% said they believed him more than the women)."
Americans also feel that Kavanaugh was not honest about his past, which allegedly included blacking out from drinking.
"half (50%) said they thought he lied about his alcohol use as a young adult, more than thought he was telling the truth about it (37%)."
More than half the country also said Kavanaugh's aggressive conduct during the hearings is unsuitable for a Supreme Court justice.
"Half say Kavanaugh's personal conduct has disqualified him to serve on the court, and 53% say his professional qualifications do not outweigh any questions about his personal conduct."
Oddly, however, a majority of those surveyed Kavanaugh was part of a "smear campaign," by a margin of 48-45 percent. That includes 27 percent of Democrats.
Social media gave its own take on the poll. Opinions varied, with seemingly everyone holding some sort of grudge.
The poll found that the opposition to Kavanaugh is stark among party lines, too.
Notably, consent for his confirmation on the right has actually improved since September, while the left has increased its opposition to the controversial nominee.
"Among Democrats, 63% opposed his nomination in early September, and that has risen to 91% in the new poll," CNN explained. "Among Republicans, 74% backed him in September and 89% do so now."
Kavanaugh's overall disapproval rating also jumped in October.
Shortly after Kavanaugh was nominated, "33% viewed him positively and 29% had a negative take. Now, nearly half have a negative view (47%) while 35% have a positive take," the poll found.
Democratic disapproval of Kavanaugh leaped from 56 to 86 percent between August and October, while Republicans' approval of Kavanaugh also increased from 62 to 80 percent over the same time period.
Additionally, Kavanaugh's approval among men and women is widely divided. Men were evenly split - 41-41 percent - while 53 percent of women hold an unfavorable view of Kavanaugh.
Fifty-six percent of respondents "think Kavanaugh would be influenced by his personal political beliefs when considering cases before the Supreme Court," the poll indicates, and a majority - 48-45 percent - believe Kavanaugh's temperament makes him unfit for the job.
SSRS conducted the poll of 1009 random adults by landline from October 4-7. The margin of error is plus or minus 9.8 percent.