Nearly 30 percent of registered voters believe the shooting death of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was wrong, but “understand” Luigi Mangione’s, the suspect charged with Thompson’s murder, alleged anger at the health insurance company, according to a new poll.
Newsweek has reached out to Mangione’s legal team via email for comment on Saturday.
Why It Matters
Reactions to Mangione’s arrest have captured and polarized the United States after a significant amount of the American public indicated they may be supportive of the 26-year-old suspect. Many have come to view Mangione as a sort of folk hero—expressing their outrage and frustration with the U.S.’s private health insurance industry. Others condemn him for his alleged crimes, which could result in life in prison and possibly the death penalty if he’s convicted.
Since he first faced murder and terrorism charges over the killing of Thompson, a 50-year-old father of two on December 4 in New York City, Mangione has received social media posts in support, comments about his attractiveness, young women attending court sessions and even depictions comparing him to Jesus.
Mangione has pleaded not guilty to New York state and federal murder and weapon charges, among other charges. He’s currently being held at a federal prison in Brooklyn after being extradited from Pennsylvania where he was arrested at an Altoona McDonald’s following a five-day manhunt.
What To Know
The USA Today/Suffolk University poll conducted between January 7 to 11 found 28.50 percent of registered voters believe the shooting was wrong, but “understand the alleged shooter’s anger with the healthcare system”
In addition, 64.60 percent of registered voters believe the shooting was wrong and the person who did it should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.
The poll of 1,000 registered voters, taken by landline and cellphone, has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.
A December poll found that a majority of college students believe that Mangione should be sentenced to time in prison if convicted.
If Mangione is found guilty—according to a poll conducted by College Pulse and shared with Newsweek—32 percent of survey participants said he should be sentenced to life imprisonment with the possibility of parole; 14 percent chose life imprisonment without the chance of parole; 26 percent preferred a fixed-term prison sentence; and 2 percent believed he should get the death penalty. The remaining respondents chose “other” or “no opinion.”
Meanwhile, a NORC at the University of Chicago poll conducted between December 12 and 16 found roughly 7 in 10 adults believe that the profits or coverage denials by health insurance companies bear “a great deal” or “moderate amount” of responsibility for Thompson’s murder. And about 8 in 10 adults believe Mangione bears a “great deal” or “moderate amount” of blame for the murder.
The polls come as health care has been a point of contention amid the 2024 election with President-elect Donald Trump approaching his time in office as conservatives have long targeted Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act as areas to cut government spending.
“During the first Trump administration, one of the key priorities was reversing the Affordable Care Act,” Alex Beene, a financial literacy instructor for the University of Tennessee at Martin, previously told Newsweek. “That ultimately didn’t happen, as some Republican senators felt there was no plan to replace it and dropping coverage from that many Americans overnight could prove disastrous. Whether or not it happens during a second term is difficult to tell.”
Curtis Means-Pool/Getty Images
What People Are Saying
Dr. Cliff Lampe, professor of information and associate dean for academic affairs in the School of Information at the University of Michigan, previously told Newsweek: “With the Mangione posts, we’re seeing a form of publishing related to a broader societal dissatisfaction with the status quo.”
He added: “With both increased income inequality and at least a perceived sense of lack of agency around corporate power, people turn to social media expression to vent and engage in a flexible dialog about societal issues. Through darkly humorous posts, expressions of admiration, sarcasm and other forms of rhetoric, people are rebuilding a sense of agency by reacting to their personal audiences.”
Susan Campbell, distinguished lecturer in the Department of Communications, Film, and Media Studies at the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of New Haven, previously told Newsweek: “People like Luigi Mangione become folk heroes when people feel powerless against systems they feel have failed them. The health insurance industry has let so many people down, and then up steps this young man to shoot one of the industry’s leaders.”
NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch told reporters after Mangione was indicted on state charges that authorities “have seen a shocking and appalling celebration of cold-blooded murder.”
“Let me say this—plainly there is no heroism in what Mangione did,” she added.
What Happens Next
Mangione is currently being held without bail in Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center. Prosecutors have indicated the federal and state cases will proceed on parallel tracks, with the state charges likely reaching trial first. Mangione’s next state court appearance is scheduled for February 21, while both cases move forward in tandem.
As Trump will be inaugurated on Monday, it remains unclear what changes he will make to the health care industry.
