A new Pine Tree State Poll from the University of New Hampshire Survey Center sought to discern Mainers’ opinions on a range of timely topics, including the Epstein files and elected officials’ stock trading activities.
As has been a staple in these surveys, respondents were also asked how they feel about the President’s job performance.
57 percent of Mainers surveyed expressed disapproval of President Donald Trump (R), while 42 percent are supportive of him.
Partisanship was an incredibly strong predictor of respondents’ opinions of the President, with 94 percent of Republicans expressing approval, compared to 31 percent of Independents, and just 1 percent of Democrats.
Also, these poll results track fairly consistently with 2024 election results. Last November 45 percent of Mainers voted for Trump as opposed to the 52 percent who voted for former vice president Kamala Harris (D).
Interestingly, the only age group to express majority support for the President was 50-64. Young Mainers were the most heavily opposed to the President, with 71 percent of these expressing negative evaluations of his job performance.
Women were also significantly more opposed to Trump than men. While a slim majority of men are supportive of the President, the same is true for only about a third of women.
91 percent of those who voted for President Trump said that they would vote for him again today. Similarly, 96 percent of those who voted for former Vice President Kamala Harris said that they would vote for her again if they could redo their ballot.
The recent poll release did not include findings on candidates for Maine governor, U.S. senator or the state’s two congressional seats.
But topically, this Pine Tree State Poll also asked respondents to share their thoughts on the government’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files.
Despite the FBI’s July announcement that Epstein died by suicide and that there is no client list, nearly three-quarters of Mainers feel that the Administration is either “definitely” or “probably” hiding something.
While nearly all Democrats (97 percent) and a large majority of Independents (70 percent) feel this way, only 45 percent of Republicans agree.
64 percent of Mainers also believe that former President Joe Biden (D) concealed information about Epstein as well, including 86 percent of Republicans, 70 percent of Independents, and just 40 percent of Democrats.
The vast majority of Mainers across the political spectrum feel that the government should release all documents related to the Epstein case, a position supported by 94 percent of Democrats, 88 percent of Independents, and 86 percent of Republicans.
Along these same lines, the possibility of pardoning Ghislaine Maxwell, who was convicted of crimes in relation to Epstein, would be an unpopular move in Maine across partisan lines.
98 percent of Democrats, 72 percent of Independents, and 55 percent of Republicans all expressed opposition to this proposal.
Approval of Trump’s handling of both foreign affairs and the economy roughly tracks with Mainers’ thoughts on his overall job performance.
Another issue that has produced a nearly unanimous opinion is stock trading bans for certain elected officials. 96 percent of Democrats, 97 percent of Independents, and 93 percent of Republicans all feel that members of Congress, Presidents, and Vice Presidents should all be prevented from engaging in stock trades.
Fielded between August 14 – 18, the survey consisted of 840 interviews – or 41 percent of those invited to participate in it.
