A poll conducted by the American Experiment shows that a majority of Minnesota residents don’t trust Governor Tim Walz to take care of crime. According to the findings of the Thinking Minnesota poll, 55% of Minnesotans do not approve of Walz’s response to the riots that have been taking place in Minneapolis. This is almost the opposite of the results of the June 2020 Thinking Minnesota poll, where 59% of Minnesotans approved of Walz’s handling of the riots.
John Hinderaker, the president of the Center of the American Experiment, said that the results show that “Minnesotans are tired of lawlessness and violent crime, and they are holding Gov. Walz accountable. These numbers reflect his poor handling of the riots last year and his continued silence and inaction in the face of violent crime.”
Hinderaker believes that these findings show that Minnesotans trust law enforcement for their safety, not political actors. He said that because of this, any Minnesota policies regarding law enforcement should “support and strengthen” the police force.
The poll also found that “While Minnesotans have lost trust in Walz, their support for law enforcement remains strong. Eighty-five percent trust the police in their local community to act in the best interests of the public, unchanged from one year ago.” A majority of the respondents also believed that the increase in crime was largely due to the lack of support for local law enforcement.
The poll also gauged how Minnesota residents feel about the current crime rates. According to the poll, 81% of Minnesotans have concerns about the level of crime in Minnesota and 80% concur that crime has gotten worse in the last year.
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Hayley Tschetter is a reporter with The Minnesota Sun | Star News Network and The College Fix. She graduated with a degree in Communications from the University of Northwestern-St. Paul. Send news tips to [email protected].
