Regardless of party, most Americans in a new poll said they agreed with the recent conviction of President Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, in his gun possession case.
The Economist/YouGov survey found that 67 percent of respondents strongly or somewhat approved of Hunter Biden’s guilty verdict.
Earlier this month, a jury of 12 Delaware residents issued three felony convictions, finding the younger Biden guilty of lying about his use of illicit drugs when applying to purchase a gun in 2018.
On the Democratic side, about 62 percent of Biden supporters said they approved of the verdict. Roughly 22 percent said they were not sure, and 20 percent disapproved, per the survey.
Among GOP supporters of former President Trump, 86 percent of poll respondents said they approved of the conviction, while just 9 percent said they were not sure, and 5 percent disapproved.
The pollsters also noted that the results of the survey were wildly different than when a similar poll was conducted after Trump’s guilty verdict in his hush money case last month. In that survey, almost all Biden supporters approved of the conviction while Trump’s supporters mostly disapproved.
During Hunter Biden’s trial, which began shortly after the hush money trial concluded, lawyers spotlighted his previous addiction to crack cocaine. The prosecution argued the case was about more than just drugs, but instead Hunter Biden’s decision to lie on government forms when purchasing a firearm.
The president’s son faces a maximum penalty of 25 years in prison and $750,000, though sentences are often less than the maximum, especially for first-time offenders. A sentencing commission predicted a defendant like Hunter Biden would usually face 15-21 months in prison, but it is ultimately up to the judge to decide.
U.S. District Judge Maryellen Noreika has yet to set a sentencing date.
The president has insisted he that he will not pardon his son but will accept the outcome of the trial. Still, the White House has not ruled out commuting Hunter Biden’s sentence once it is handed down by the judge.
The younger Biden also faces separate charges in California for failing to pay $1.4 million in taxes and filing false returns. The case could go to trial in September.
The Economist/YouGov survey was conducted among 1,600 people June 16-18 and has a margin of error of 3 percentage points.
