WASHINGTON — American voters are approaching the election presidential election There is deep unease about what could happen, including the potential for political violence, attempts to overturn election results and its broader implications for democracy, according to a new poll.

The findings of the poll, conducted by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, point to persistent concerns about the fragility of the world’s oldest democracy, nearly four years after former President Donald Trump came to power. refuse to accept 2020 election results inspired crowd of supporters to attack the US Capitol. attempted violence to stop the peace power transfer.

Nearly 4 in 10 registered voters say they are “extremely” or “very” concerned about violent attempts to overturn the results after the November election. A similar proportion are concerned about legal efforts in this direction. And nearly 1 in 3 voters say they are “extremely” or “very” concerned about attempts by local or state election officials to prevent results from being finalized.

Relatively few voters (about a third or less) are “not very interested” or “not at all interested” in what is going on.

Trump has he kept lying about fraud cost him re-election four years ago and again this time predicting that he could only lose if the election was rigged, a strategy has served since his first run for office. Allies and Republican National Committeereshaped lawsuits filed potential across the country beginning until after the election legal challenges should he lose?

Aostara Kaye of Downey, Calif., said of Trump: “I thought after January 6, 2021, the GOP would have the common sense to reject him as a candidate.” “And since they didn’t, I think it emboldened him to think he could do anything, and they’re still going to stick with him.”

Trump’s wide-ranging initiatives with reject the will voters and stay in power after that 2020 loss It raised concerns that he would again be unable to compromise if he lost to Vice President Kamala Harris.

Nearly 9 in 10 voters said the loser of the presidential election must surrender once each state vote count is completed and legal challenges are resolved; That includes nearly 8 in 10 Republicans. But only a third of voters expect Trump to accept the results and concede if he loses.

Democrats and Republicans have very different views on this issue: About two-thirds of Republican voters think Trump would agree, while only 1 in 10 Democrats do.

The same concern does not apply to Harris. Nearly 8 in 10 voters, including a majority of Republican voters, said Harris would accept the results and accept them if she lost the election.

Members of both parties have broad concerns about how American democracy will fare depending on the outcome of the November election.

Overall, about half of voters believe Trump would “a lot” or “somewhat” undermine democracy in the United States if he wins, while nearly 4 in 10 said the same about Harris.

It’s no surprise that Americans are deeply divided along ideological lines. Nearly 8 in 10 Republicans said a new Trump presidency would strengthen democracy “very much” or “somewhat,” while a similar share of Democrats said the same about Harris’ presidency.

Nearly 9 in 10 voters in both parties said the opposing party’s candidate would weaken democracy at least “somewhat” if elected.

Kaye, a retired health system employee, called Trump “an existential threat to the Constitution.” One possibility that frightens him is that if Trump wins, his new administration might not have the guardrails that existed in the previous administration.

Debra Apodaca, a 60-year-old Republican voter from Tucson, Arizona, said Harris is a bigger threat to democracy. President Joe Biden said his administration prioritized foreign aid too much and failed to pay attention to its own people.

“We send our tax dollars everywhere. Do not stay here. Why aren’t we interested in America?” he said. “Why should we pay taxes if we just ship it?”

That lack of concern extends to the border, he said, adding that a Harris win would be “the end of the Border Patrol.”

One of the things that divides voters in their views on American democracy is the attack on the US Capitol on January 6 and who is to blame. Democrats and independents are much more likely than Republican voters to attribute “a great deal” or “a fair amount” of responsibility to Trump.

Susan Ohde, an independent voter from Chicago and a retiree in the financial industry, said she was concerned about “crazy people buying into the misinformation they’re being fed,” leading to another attack like this.