Three-quarters of Republicans don't feel that sexual assault allegations against Donald Trump, if they were proven to be true, would disqualify him from the presidency
Donald Trump's campaign has taken a significant hit in the wake of video footage revealing him talking about making aggressive and unwanted advances on women, and in recent days the damage has only been compounded as more women have emerged, alleging that Donald Trump sexually assaulted them. The video, and recent allegations, have shaken the support of many, including leading Republicans who now have decided not to support Donald Trump's candidacy to become president.
The latest research from YouGov/Huffington Post shows that, even if the allegations of sexual assault were true, this would not disqualify him from the presidency in the eyes of most Americans. 44% say that he would be disqualified from the presidency if he had sexually assaulted women, while 49% say that it is either relevant but not disqualifying (27%) or that it is not even relevant (22%). Only 19% of Republicans say that sexual assault would disqualify him, while 35% say that it is relevant but not disqualifying and 39% say that it is simply not relevant to the election.
Women (46%) are only slightly more likely than men (43%) to say that sexual assault would disqualify Trump from the presidency.
Just under half of the country (43%) believe that the allegations against Trump are credible. Among Republicans, however, 51% say that they are not credible and only 12% say that they are credible. Only 4% of Democrats doubt the truth of the allegations against Trump.
Donald Trump's main defence of the video, in which he was recorded discussing grabbing women inappropriately, was that it was merely 'locker room talk', the type of conversation that men commonly engage in behind closed doors. Most American men disagree, however, as 54% say that talking about women like this is not normal for men, though 33% say that it is.
