A majority of people think a president’s Supreme Court nomination should be taken up by the Senate, no matter when it occurs, according to a new national poll.
Fifty-three percent think the Senate should consider Supreme Court nominations even if they occur at the end of a president’s term, according to the latest Monmouth University poll. The poll was conducted in the days after President Obama’s nomination of Merrick Garland to fill the seat left vacant by Justice Antonin Scalia’s death.
However, another 43 percent say that these late vacancies should be put on hold so voters can consider the potential nomination when deciding who to elect as the next president.
On the specific question of Garland’s nomination, 69 percent feel the Senate should hold hearings on his nomination, while just 25 percent say the Senate should not. Majorities of Democrats (85 percent), independents (66 percent) and Republicans (56 percent) say that Garland should get a hearing.
Furthermore, 77 percent think Senate Republicans are playing politics by refusing to consider Garland. That includes 86 percent of Democrats, 80 percent of independents and 62 percent of Republicans.
The telephone poll of 1,008 American adults was conducted March 17-20 and carries a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.
