Just a quarter of Americans back Iran strikes: Poll

As the U.S. engages in another war in the Middle East, this time against Iran, a new Reuters/Ipsos poll found that roughly one in four respondents support it.

The survey, released Sunday, found that 27 percent of respondents approve of “Operation Epic Fury,” which the U.S. launched in tandem with Israel early Saturday morning. Meanwhile, 43 percent of respondents disapprove of the strikes and 29 percent were not sure. 

Over half of Republicans support the strikes, with 32 percent unsure and 13 percent against. Just 7 percent of Democrats are in favor of the operation, with 74 percent in opposition and 19 percent unsure. 

U.S. Central Command said that as of 9:30 a.m. EST on Sunday, three U.S. service members had been killed in action, while five were injured and “several” others sustained minor shrapnel injuries and concussions. The joint U.S. and Israeli strikes resulted in the death of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and a number of other political and military officials in the Middle Eastern nation.

The skepticism from Americans on President Trump authorizing military action does not extend only to Iran. Over half of respondents to the Reuters/Ipsos poll said the president uses military force “too much,” including 23 percent of Republicans, 87 percent of Democrats and 60 percent of those who do not identify with either party. 

In recent months, Trump has overseen operations in Iran, Venezuela, Syria and Nigeria, after vowing during his 2024 campaign that he would end the cycle of U.S. entanglements abroad and focus on issues at home. For that, the president has received backlash from Democrats on Capitol Hill but also members of his MAGA base.

As for the timeline of the operation in Iran, a country of over 90 million people, Trump told the Daily Mail it will take roughly four weeks. 

“It’s always been a four-week process. We figured it will be four weeks or so. It’s always been about a four-week process so — as strong as it is, it’s a big country, it’ll take four weeks — or less,” he said.

The Reuters/Ipsos survey was conducted online with 1,282 U.S. adults. It has a margin of error of 3 percentage points for all adults and between 4 and 5 percentage points for specific political affiliations.

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