About half of registered voters support the Department of Justice unleashing FBI agents to storm former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago compound in Florida on Monday morning.
An exclusive snap poll from Politico and global market research firm Morning Consult garnered early reaction Wednesday from a sample of 2,004 registered voters that asked a series of questions surrounding federal law enforcement acting on a search warrant to reportedly retrieve documents related to the National Archives.
When asked whether or not voters approved of “the FBI’s decision to conduct a search warrant on former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida,” 49% strongly or somewhat said yes.
The breakdown divided voters into several demographics — but overall, the poll revealed that 84% of Democrats, 47% of Independents, and 15% of Republicans support the FBI scouring Trump’s residence.
Lawyers for the Department of Justice present during the raid reportedly informed Trump’s representatives that the search warrant gave them “full access to everything” on site. However, reports have claimed authorities blocked the former president’s lawyers from observation during the raid.
Federal agents executed the search warrant because they reportedly believed that Trump held back turning over all the classified information, which included documents marked as “top secret,” that were supposed to be sent back earlier this year.
Federal agents removed more than ten boxes of material, which are being sorted at a local FBI field office, from the property during the raid.
Pollsters sampled that three in four voters had seen, read, or heard about the FBI’s unannounced visit Monday morning, with 54% of the sampled believing Trump mishandled classified information. Others assume the raid either was about January 6 or “something else.”
Nearly 70% of Republicans sampled agree with President Trump, who called the raid political persecution and a “Witch Hunt” on Truth Social.
“These are dark times for our Nation, as my beautiful home, Mar-A-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, is currently under siege, raided, and occupied by a large group of FBI agents,” Trump said in a statement. “After working and cooperating with the relevant Government agencies, this unannounced raid on my home was not necessary or appropriate.”
“They even broke into my safe!” Trump said. “It is political targeting at the highest level!”
Still, 49% of voters, driven by Democrats and Independents, leaned more toward believing that authorities were looking for evidence of a crime that Trump allegedly committed.
And while 63% of Republicans believe the raid was an abuse of power that should be investigated, 62% of Democrats said otherwise.
Attorney General Merrick Garland announced Thursday afternoon that he “personally” approved the FBI search warrant on the home of former President Donald Trump this week, and that the Department has moved to unseal the search warrant.
Garland said the federal court authorized the warrant, which requires finding probable cause to execute.
“Faithful adherence to the rule of law is the bedrock principle of the Justice Department and of our democracy,” Garland said. “Upholding the rule of law means applying the law evenly without fear or favor.”
“Under my watch, that is precisely what the Justice Department is doing,” he added.
Prosecutors told ABC News that Trump should have an opportunity to respond and lodge objections to the motion, which includes “regards to any ‘legitimate privacy interests’ or the potential for other ‘injury’ if these materials are made public.”
Trump, who has yet to announce a 2024 presidential run, said Thursday that his team has fully cooperated with the Justice Department’s investigation into the alleged mishandling of classified information.
“The government could have had whatever they wanted, if we had it,” Trump said.
Trump’s 2024 standing among his voter base after the FBI raid jumped to the highest record since his 2020 loss, according to the survey.
58% of Republicans surveyed support Trump in the 2024 presidential election, showing a 5% increase from two months ago.
Ryan Saavedra contributed to this report.