A recent poll shows a slight majority of Americans believe the government should negotiate with terrorists.
A YouGov poll conducted from Dec. 10-14 asked 1,000 American adults, “If a U.S. soldier is captured by a terrorist group, do you think the United States should or should not negotiate with that group for the release of the soldier?”
In response, 52 percent of Americans responded the government “should” negotiate with terrorists for the release of an American soldier while 24 percent responded the government “should not” negotiate with terrorists.
Democrats were more likely to support negotiating with terrorists compared to Republicans, Independents, and all Americans. The poll found 65 percent of Democrats, 47 percent of Independents, and 42 percent of Republicans believe the government should negotiate with terrorists.
Conversely, Republicans were more likely to say America should not negotiate with terrorists. The poll found 39 percent of Republicans, 26 percent of Independents, and 13 percent of Democrats believe America should not negotiate with terrorists.
The YouGov poll was conducted through Web-based interviews. The poll has a margin of error of ±4.2% (adjusted for weighting).