Forty-four percent of Americans say the Senate should confirm Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch, The Hill reports.
Gorsuch, who will likely need 60 votes, is expected to face opposition from Democrats who characterize his views as being on the extreme right. Some lawmakers also maintain that Gorsuch doesn't deserve the seat since Senate Republicans refused to give Merrick Garland, President Obama's nominee, a vote last year.
But according to a Harvard-Harris survey, Americans think he should be pushed through. Thirty-two percent say they're unsure whether Gorsuch should be confirmed, while 25 percent say he shouldn't be.
"Gorsuch is off to an excellent start in his nomination process," Mark Penn, the co-director of the Harvard-Harris poll, told the Hill. "A quarter, however, is holding back judgment for now, suggesting televised confirmation hearings could be critical for him and them."
The survey, conducted between Feb. 11 and 13, polled 2,148 registered voters. In it, Americans also said they believed that the judicial branch had become politicized, with 55 percent saying that federal judges rule based on their political views. Forty-five percent said they believed that judges' decisions were based solely on the law.
"A majority now believes judges are using their political views to shape their rulings while over 8 in 10 want judges to put their political views aside," Penn said. "This suggests growing credibility problems for the courts unless corrected. It also suggests a message that Gorsuch can emphasize about how he intends to rule if confirmed — on the basis of the law, not politics."