Publicly supports Jackson on SCOTUS

West Long Branch, NJ – Americans support the appointment of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the US Supreme Court with a more than 2 to 1 margin. A majority also agrees with President Joe Biden’s promise to nominate a black woman as his first SCOTUS nominee. The Monmouth (“Mon-Muth”) Poll University finds more than two-thirds of the public that it is important for the court to reflect the diversity of the nation. About 2 in 10 believe that a black woman on the Supreme Court has a real impact on how cases are decided, while 3 in 10 say it will have no impact.

A majority of Americans (55%) say Jackson should be confirmed as Associate Justice at the Supreme Court. Only 21% say they should not be confirmed and 24% say no opinion. Nearly half of the public has heard enough about Jackson to feel that she is either quite qualified (33%) or somewhat qualified (14%) for the position. Only 9% say they are not qualified, while 43% have not heard enough about the candidate to assess their qualifications.

“Expectations of Judge Jackson’s impact may be limited, but that could be seen as a good thing. The public can first and foremost see all nine judges as a common background as a lawyer first and foremost. The diversity of his membership brings more nuances to their considerations. Overall, the initial reaction to this nomination is generally positive, “said Patrick Murray, director of the independent Monmouth University Polling Institute.

There is widespread support for Jackson’s nomination among Democrats, while Republicans are rather opposed, but not overwhelming. Specifically, 82% of Democrats say Jackson should be confirmed and 64% say she is fully qualified. Among Republicans, 42% say they should not be confirmed (compared to 29% who say they should), but only 20% think Jackson is not qualified to sit on the court (compared to 34% , who say they would be qualified).

Among black Americans, 73% say Jackson should be confirmed (only 3% are against their confirmation and 24% have no opinion) and 80% agree with Biden’s promise to name a black woman as his first SCOTUS nominee. By comparison, 61% of other racist minorities agree Biden’s race and gender are a priority in their choice, but non-Spanish whites are divided on this (45% vote and 50% disagree).

The Monmouth poll also found the U.S. Supreme Court as a whole received a split 42% approval and 42% denied rating for the work it does. Republicans (52%) are more likely than Democrats (31%) to agree. Six years ago, the Supreme Court approved a more positive rating of 49% and 33% disapproved, with Democrats (65% approving) more positive than Republicans (36% approving).

The Monmouth University Poll was conducted from March 10 to 14, 2022 by telephone with 809 adults in the United States. The preliminary results in this publication have an error margin of +/- 3.5 percentage points. The survey was conducted by the Monmouth University Polling Institute in West Long Branch, NJ.

QUESTIONS AND RESULTS

(* Some columns may not contribute 100% due to the round.)

[Q1-12 previously released.]

[Q19 held.]

[Q20-29 & Q40 previously released.]

[Q30-39 held for future release.]

METHODOLOGY

The Monmouth University Poll was sponsored and conducted by the Monmouth University Polling Institute from 10 to 14 March 2022 with a probability-based national random sample of 809 adults aged 18 and over. This includes 278 contacts by a live interviewer on a landline phone and 531 contacts by a live interviewer on a mobile phone, in English. Telephone numbers were selected by a mixture of random digits and list-based samples. Landline respondents were selected using a modified Troldahl-Carter latest adult household screen. Interview services were provided by Braun Research, with samples obtained from Dynata (RDD, n = 545), Aristotle (list, n = 140) and a panel of former Monmouth survey participants (n = 124). Monmouth is responsible for all aspects of survey design, data weighting and analysis. The entire sample is weighted for region, age, education, gender, and race based on U.S. Census Information (ACS 2018 One-Year Survey). For results based on this sample, one can say with 95% confidence that the error attributable to samples has a maximum margin of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points (not suitable for sample design). Sampling errors may be larger for subgroups (see table below). In addition to the sample error, one should keep in mind that the question formulation and practical difficulties in conducting surveys may introduce errors or biases in the results of the opinion polls.

Click on PDF file link below for full methodology and cross-tabulations of key demographic groups.

Download this poll report with cross tables