Young conservatives have overwhelming support for Israel, Trump's handling of relations, poll finds - Jerusalem Post Staff

 

by Jerusalem Post Staff

Poll finds most young conservatives approve Trump’s handling of Israel ties, noting that even listeners of antisemitic/anti-Zionist Candace Owens, Tucker Carlson, and Nick Fuentes show support.

 

US President Donald Trump at a press conference with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House in Washington, US. February 4, 2025.

(photo credit: REUTERS/LEAH MILLIS)

Young conservatives and supporters of US President Donald Trump have a largely positive view of Israel, and strongly approve of Trump's handling of the relationship between Jerusalem and Washington, a poll by right-wing outlet Washington Free Beacon found last week.

The poll found that support for Trump's handling of the relationship had a 43-point margin in favor of approval, and a majority of those polled believe that the US should support Israel as an ally.

This was still the case for those who get their news from antisemitic and/or anti-Israel podcasters like Nick Fuentes, Tucker Carlson, and Candace Owens.

The poll found that 58% of Owens's listeners, and 54% of Carlson's still hold favorable views towards Israel.

Even listeners of Fuentes, who has described Israel as the anti-Christ, and accused Israel of staging Hamas's October 7 massacre as a "false flag" attack, still supported Israel by 38% as compared to 37% who oppose Israel.

Supporters of the America First ideology and US President Donald Trump cheer on Nick Fuentes, a leader of the America First movement and a white nationalist, as he makes his way through the crowd for a speech during the ''Stop the Steal'' and ''Million MAGA March'' protests, November 14, 2020. (credit: REUTERS/LEAH MILLIS)

The poll found that approximately 20% of those polled had heard of the conspiracy theory that Israel was responsible for the assassination of then-President John F. Kennedy. Out of these, 49% dismissed it as definitely or probably untrue, and 20% stated that it was definitely or probably true. Notably, this theory has been pushed by Owens, and Carlson has suggested it on his podcast, while not explicitly promoting it.

The poll also found that 29% of those asked said they were familiar with the claim that Israel persecutes its Christian population. 40% of those dismissed the notion, while 27% were receptive to it. Notably, Carlson spoke with Agapia Stephanopoulos on his podcast, promoting this claim.

Media perception of Israel is widely negative, poll finds

The poll also found a perception that 45% of the news encountered about Israel is negative, while 21% is positive.

The level of Zionism of a host in the US's right-wing media sphere does not appear to be a major differentiator in their support or listener reach, the poll noted.

The poll was conducted between August 26-31, and surveyed over 1,000 young conservatives between the ages of 18 and 34, with a margin error of 3.3%.

The poll was also conducted before the assassination of Charlie Kirk in Utah last week, with findings published after the event occurred. 

Jerusalem Post Staff

Source: https://www.jpost.com/american-politics/article-868178

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