Most in new poll say Twitter was right to ban Trump

In a new poll, just over half of U.S. voters said that Twitter was right to ban former President Trump after the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack, though many said that Trump should be allowed back on the platform.

In a Politico-Morning Consult poll released Wednesday, 53 percent of voters surveyed said Twitter made the right decision when banning the former president from the platform. However, 11 percent of those respondents said that it is time to end the ban.

In contrast, 37 percent said that the ban was wrong and that Trump should be allowed on the platform. Eleven percent said they don’t know or don’t have an opinion.

Perception of the ban varied heavily based on party identification: 77 percent of Democratic respondents said Twitter was right and should continue its ban on Trump, while 72 percent of Republicans surveyed said the former president should have never been banned at all and should return to the platform.

Overall, 47 percent of respondents said that Trump should be allowed back on Twitter, while 42 percent said the ban should continue.

The new poll of 2,005 registered voters was conducted May 13-16 and has a margin of error of 2 percentage points.

Twitter permanently banned Trump shortly after the Capitol insurrection, saying that his posts on the platform could encourage more violence. Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who struck a deal to buy Twitter for $44 billion last month, said he would reverse the former president’s ban on the platform if the acquisition is completed. Musk has since said he’s put his plan to buy Twitter “on hold,” though he added that he’s “still committed” to acquiring the platform.

Trump has said that he will not return to Twitter even if he’s invited back on.