Majority Of Americans Oppose Strike On Syria: Poll

A majority of Americans oppose a strike against the Syrian government for its alleged use of chemical weapons, according to a poll released Tuesday by the Washington Post and ABC News.

The poll, conducted from Aug. 28 through Sunday, found that 59 percent of Americans across the political spectrum opposed the possibility of a United States strike against Syria, while 36 percent of Americans supported the idea.

The poll also broke down support by political affiliation, finding that 54 percent of Democrats were against a possible strike, and 42 percent were in favor. Similarly, 55 percent of Republicans opposed a strike on Syria while 43 percent supported one. Independents were overwhelmingly against the strike, as 66 percent opposed intervention, and only 30 percent supported it.

Women opposed a strike against Syria more strongly than men, at 65 percent against and 30 percent for. By contrast, men opposed a strike 54 to 43 percent.

The poll also found that support for military intervention in Syria would increase if other countries like Great Britain and France were involved, but not by a significant margin. Under such a scenario, 52 percent of all registered voters still opposed a strike, while 45 percent were in favor.

The poll also found that Americans overwhelmingly opposed the United States supplying weapons to Syrian rebels. 71 percent of registered voters were against arming Syrian rebels, while 26 percent supported such a program.