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Saturday, Nov. 14, 2020

Did polls during primary season find strong support for a wealth tax in the US?

Christopher Hutton, Gigafact
yes

The concept of a wealth tax, which was advocated by some candidates in the 2020 Democratic primary, won majority popular support in several polls during that phase of the campaign.

In a January 2020 Reuters poll, 64% of Americans agreed the very rich should contribute extra to support public programs. In a December 2019 poll for Fox News, 68% of respondents expressed support for a new 2% tax on anyone with assets of more than $50 million. Several other pollsters reported similar results.

Stanford Business School researchers in March reported wide support for the idea cutting across political affiliations. Support faded, however, if survey respondents were told a tax would hurt economic growth or employment. "If it would cause the economy to suffer, they quickly change their position,” said David Larcker, an accounting professor.

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