Michigan Voters Reject Trump's Canada Tariffs in New Polls

A new poll by The Washington Post and Schar School has found that more than 60 percent of Michigan likely voters oppose President Donald Trump's 50 percent tariffs on Canadian goods. This finding comes after a WDIV-Detroit News survey recorded the same direction of travel, and after the administration imposed tariffs this month on about $20 billion of Canadian goods including cement, wine, dairy, and hockey sticks.

The Washington Post-Schar School poll found that 52.5 percent of Michigan likely voters strongly opposed the tariffs, while only 16.9 percent said they are good for the state's economy against 61.5 percent who said bad. The poll also revealed that 71.5 percent of respondents expect the tariffs to increase what they pay for goods.

A separate Economist-YouGov poll conducted from August 28 to 31 found that 58 percent of Americans oppose raising tariffs on Canadian goods, while 68 percent say Trump's tariffs have hurt average Americans. The partisan gap is wide, with 87 percent of Democrats and 64 percent of independents opposing higher Canadian tariffs.

The results of the two Michigan polls suggest that voters experience the tariffs as a cost, not an abstraction, heading into November.