Most US voters say Russia-Ukrainian war at 'stalemate': poll
A majority of American voters consider the war between Russia and Ukraine to be at a stalemate, according to a recent poll, although this view differed depending on a variety of factors, including sex and political affiliation.
According to a Rasmussen Reports poll published last week, 52% of likely U.S. voters consider the war to be at a stalemate, which is an increase compared to the 45% of likely voters who said the same in a May 2022 poll.
Additionally, 14% of likely U.S. voters believe that Russia is winning, which is down from 17% from last May, while 19% think Ukraine is winning, which is a decrease from the 25% reported last May.
The most recent Rasmussen Reports survey assessed 1,007 U.S. likely voters online and by phone from Dec. 26-28, 2023. The margin of error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence.
Along political party lines, 50% of Democrats agreed with 53% of Republicans and 52% of voters unaffiliated with either party that the war between Russia and Ukraine is at a stalemate, according to the latest poll.
Forty-two percent of respondents said they think "it would be better for American interests" if Ukraine kept fighting until they completely defeat the Russian invasion, while 40% said it would be better if Ukraine negotiated with Russia. Nineteen percent of participants said they were unsure.
Democrats were more likely (49%) to say it would be better for American interests if Ukraine continued fighting, compared to 41% of Republicans and 35% of unaffiliated voters.
Rasmussen also noted that 34% of likely voters felt the United States has done too much to help Ukraine, while 33% said they don't think the U.S. is doing enough to help Ukraine, and 22% said support for Ukraine is "about right." Another 11% said that they were not sure.
Republicans (42%) were more likely than Democrats (23%) and unaffiliated voters (37%) to say the U.S. is doing too much to support Ukraine. On the other hand, 39% of Democrats, 30% of Republicans and 30% of unaffiliated voters said the U.S. is not doing enough to aid Ukraine.
While men (48%) were more likely than women (36%) to believe it would be better for American interests if Ukraine kept fighting Russia, male voters (57%) were also more likely than women voters (47%) to hold the view that the war is at a stalemate.
The participants who were the most likely to say it would be in America’s best interests if Ukraine kept fighting expressed strong support for President Joe Biden. Voters (66%) who strongly approve of Biden’s performance as president said they favored Ukraine continuing to fight.
However, a slight majority of those who disapprove of Biden’s performance as president (51%) said it would be better if Ukraine negotiated for peace.
On Feb. 24, 2022, Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, deploying ground troops and unleashing airstrikes against cities and military bases. This has included attacks on many civilian areas and churches.
While initial predictions that the Eastern European nation would fall quickly to the invasion, the Ukrainians have mounted a stronger-than-expected resistance to the Russian invasion, according to some media reports.
Despite this, however, a counteroffensive launched by Ukrainian forces last year failed to penetrate Russian defenses.
“This isn’t World War II and Guderian,” said a senior Ukrainian security official to the Wall Street Journal, referencing German Gen. Heinz Guderian, a pioneer of Blitzkrieg. “This is World War I and trenches.”
Samantha Kamman is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter: @Samantha_Kamman