Poll shows partisan split on Trump Venezuela Maduro arrest operation
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Republicans and Democrats disagree sharply over support for the military operation ordered by President Donald Trump to arrest Venezuelan leader Nicholas Maduro, according to a new national poll.
65 percent of Republicans polled by Reuters/Ipsos said they supported the U.S. military’s predawn strike on Saturday, in which Maduro was captured and handed over to federal authorities for investigation on drug-trafficking charges.
But only 23 percent of Independents and 11 percent of Democrats approved of the military operation in Venezuela in the poll conducted Sunday and Monday.
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Nicolas Maduro is seen in handcuffs after landing on a helipad in Manhattan; He boards an armored vehicle, escorted by heavily armed Federal agents, en route to the Federal courthouse in Manhattan in New York City on January 5, 2026. (XNY/Star Max/GC images via Getty Images)
Nearly two-thirds of Democrats and 35 percent of Independents, but only 5 percent of Republicans, said they disapproved of the strike.
Overall, one-third of those questioned approved of the mission, one-third had no opinion or did not answer the question, and 34% disapproved.
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Trump, who has long criticized the foreign interventions of his predecessors in the White House, said the United States would “rule” Venezuela. “The responsibility is on us,” the president repeated to reporters.
President Donald Trump speaks as Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth join him at the Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, on Saturday, January 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
But 72% of adults questioned in the survey90 percent of Democrats, 74 percent of Independents and 54 percent of Republicans said they were worried the United States would get too involved in Venezuela.
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The president said Monday he was prepared to send U.S. ground troops to Venezuela if the South American nation’s leaders do not cooperate. Vowing to overhaul and rebuild Venezuela’s oil industry, Trump said the United States needed “full access” to the country’s vast oil fields.
Sixty percent of Republicans surveyed said they support sending U.S. troops to Venezuela, compared to just 30% of adults.
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But reflecting the concerns of those advocating the America First agenda in the GOP, only 43% of Republican respondents agreed with the statement that “the United States should have a policy of dominating affairs in the Western Hemisphere,” while 19% disagreed and the remainder were undecided or did not answer the question.
The president’s approval rating in the poll was 42%, up three points from the previous Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted in December.
