NY Times Poll: Voter Opinion on Israel divided; Disapproval of Biden’s Handling of Gaza

Voters overall disapprove of how President Joe Biden is handling the war between Israel and Hamas, but they’re almost evenly divided over whether they want Israel to keep up its military campaign or stop it to avoid further civilian casualties in Gaza, according to a new poll from The New York Times and Siena College.

Biden is hit especially hard by voters aged 18-29, a group that traditionally makes up a strong demographic for Democrats, The New York Times reported Tuesday. Almost 75% of voters in that age group say they disagree with how Biden is handling the Gaza conflict.

The numbers are translating to higher poll numbers for former President Donald Trump, Biden’s expected competitor in next year’s general election race for the White House, as many registered younger voters said they would pick Trump over Biden, 49% to 43%. Those figures have flipped since July, when voters in the younger age bracket backed Biden by 10%.

Voters are also sending decidedly mixed signals about the direction U.S. policy-making should take as the war in Gaza grinds into its third month, with Israelis still reeling from the Oct. 7 terrorist attack, thousands of Palestinian deaths in Gaza, and the Biden administration seeking to pressure Israel to scale back its military campaign. Nearly as many Americans want Israel to continue its military campaign as want it to stop now to avoid further civilian casualties.

The split views on the conflict suggest Biden could have a problem holding on to the voters that brought him to office in 2020. The poll showed Trump leading Biden by 46% to 44%, with a margin of 3.5 percentage points. Biden’s job approval rating has dropped two points since July to 37%.

And while the Gaza situation ranked high with voters, they still said the economy remains their main concern. However, that indicator has also dropped since July, with 34% saying it’s a main issue now, compared with 45% previously.

Meanwhile, 44% of the potential voters polled said Israel should stop its campaign in Gaza because of civilian deaths, though 39%, slightly fewer, said Israel should keep fighting even if the casualties continue to grow.

The numbers were almost identical when it came to Israel’s objective of securing the release of hostages taken by Hamas on Oct. 7 or wiping out Hamas altogether.

But in several questions the younger voters revealed they see the worst about Israel, and do not believe the country is serious about reaching peace with the Palestinians.

Almost half said Israel is killing civilians intentionally, and almost three-quarters said Israel is not taking sufficient precautions to avoid civilian deaths. Further, most said they oppose providing more economic or military aid to Israel.

Some 48% of the potential voters of all ages said they do not think Israel is taking enough care to avoid killing civilians in Gaza.

The poll also revealed a partisan divide regarding Israel:

• 75% of Republicans said they sympathize with Israel, not the Palestinians.
• 80% of white evangelical Christians said they support Israel.
• 31% of Democrats said they sympathize more with Israel and 34% said they sympathize more with the Palestinians, while 16% said they support both sides.

That split, the Times reported, could resonate with Jewish voters who picked Biden in 2020, as could the rise in antisemitism that has occurred along with the Israel-Hamas war.

The survey polled 1,016 registered voters in English and Spanish on Dec. 10-14.