Henry Rodgers on July 3, 2018
A majority of Americans want a vote on President Donald Trump’s pick for the Supreme Court before the Nov. 6 midterm elections.
Trump is expected to announce his choice for the Supreme Court Monday and 62 percent of voters said his nominee should be confirmed or rejected before the midterms, according to an NBC News poll. Thirty-three percent said the Senate should wait until after the elections to confirm Trump’s nominee.
Among Republicans, 85 percent said the Senate’s vote on the nominee should take place before Nov. 6. With Independents, 61 percent also believe the vote for the Supreme Court nominee should happen before the elections. Democrats had a much different view, with 55 percent saying the voting should be postponed until after the midterms.
The news comes as Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy announced his retirement Wednesday, freeing a seat up in the court. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell took to the Senate floor hours after the announcement, saying he and the Senate are ready to confirm Trump’s next nominee.
The two names reportedly at the top of the list to replace Kennedy are Judges Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett.
The NBC News/SurveyMonkey poll was conducted from June 27 until July 1. In total, 2,652 adults participated in the survey. There was a margin of error of plus or minus 2.5 percentage points.
