Majority say preventing Iran from acquiring nukes more important than ending war: Poll

As Vice President JD Vance heads to Pakistan to negotiate a deal to end the Iran war, polling data suggests that the public prioritizes accomplishing key American objectives over ending the matter quickly.

Overall, a narrow majority of 53% of U.S. voters say it is more important to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon than it is to end the fighting, according to a Napolitan News survey. A further 60% prioritize preventing Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon on stabilizing energy prices in the U.S.

"People don't trust the regime. People don't want weaselly promises," pollster Scott Rasmussen said. "They don't want the idea of, of saying, well, Iran could develop nuclear capabilities for civilian purposes if they promise not to use it for nuclear weapons. That's what the Iranian regime has said they would like to do. Very few Americans think that Iran would keep that promise. They want to see that nuclear capability eliminated completely."

The public also appears to be in line with the administration on NATO as it increasingly sours on the alliance due to disputes over support for the Iran war.

Overall, 38% of U.S. voters believe the U.S. should commit to defending the bloc if it is attacked, while 32% want to leave the alliance altogether. President Donald Trump has had harsh words for NATO in recent weeks as members of the alliance have declined to send military support to the Strait of Hormuz and some members have even barred the U.S. from using their military bases amid the conflict.

"Voters tend to look at [NATO] more as maybe a social club of friendly nations," Rasmussen said. "They'd like to give better trading preferences to European allies. People we share a cultural heritage with. And so they don't want to leave it because that sounds like moving away from our friends... In a sense, it's like people want to break up but still be friends with these Europeans."

Vance is set to begin negotiations this weekend, along side Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, the president's son-in-law.

Ben Whedon is the Chief Political Correspondent at Just the News. Follow him on X.