A new USA Today/Suffolk University poll determined that 2 out of 3 U.S. voters want Congress to quickly elect a new speaker of the House to prevent a government shutdown and provide aid to Israel and Ukraine.
According to the survey, 67.1% of voters want a new speaker elected "as soon as possible" to ensure immediate funding needs are met, with 24.7% saying they didn't care.
Another 8.2% said they were undecided on the issue.
According to Suffolk University, the poll was conducted with 1,000 registered voters in the United States from Oct. 17-20 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.
"We got to have a speaker, [but] I don't think we're going to have anybody soon," George Ramge, 72, of San Diego, a building contractor and political independent told USA Today in the survey. "There's a lot of Hollywood politicians out there getting their time on TV, and I don't think they're really serving the people's purpose."
Maryland Democrat Carl Hickey, 85, agreed with Ramge.
"They need to be functioning, and that's the only way they're going to function," the retired Methodist minister said in the report.
Despite political differences, large majorities favored a quick resolution to the speaker dilemma with 86% of Democrats, 57% of Republicans and 59% of independents saying they want a speaker elected quickly.
"How often do you see Democrats, Republicans, and independents agree on anything in D.C.?" said David Paleologos, director of Suffolk's Political Research Center. "Look at every demographic: gender, geography, age, race, education level, income, political philosophy, even those who trust CNN vs. Fox News. They are all speaking the same seven words in unison: 'Elect a speaker and do your job.' "
Former Republican Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., was voted out of the seat earlier this month 216-210 with all Democrats joining eight Republicans to oust him.
Potential successors House Majority Leader Rep. Steve Scalise, R-La., and Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, could not gather the 217-vote majority required to win the position during several rounds of balloting, the report said.
The poll also found 61% of voters want Congress to reach a deal and not cause the government to shut down after a Nov. 17 deadline.
"I mean, don't we live in a bipartisan world?" said Desiree Whitney, 64, of Boerne, Texas, an independent who voted for former President Donald Trump in 2020. "Why should it stop, you know, at our government, or does it begin there? I mean, it's all about negotiations."
Charles Kim ✉
Charles Kim, a Newsmax general assignment writer, is an award-winning journalist with more than 30 years in reporting on news and politics.
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