Crossing partisan lines: More Democrats, Republicans want a special investigation into Russia-Trump ties

Democrats have decried President Donald Trump's election as a result of interference from Russia, but according to a new poll, more Republicans are beginning to want answers.

With recent allegations being made that members of Trump's cabinet have had ties to Russian officials, Americans say they'd like to see a special prosecutor brought in to investigate. Even Republicans — most of whom believe that that Congress would be able to handle the investigation — 43 percent believe a special prosecutor is necessary. Among Democrats, the call for a special prosecutor is more stark: 82 percent of Dems, and 67 percent of Independents ,agree that an independent outside investigation should take place.

Concerns over Trump's cabinet picks and their Russian ties have varied across the board. Nearly three quarters of of Democrats — 71 percent — say that they are "very concerned" about the alleged ties, while more than 50 percent of Republicans say that they are not concerned at all.

The idea that Russian intelligence interfered — or tried to interfere-- in the recent election is one of the most polarizing issues. A previous CNN/ORC poll, conducted in January, showed that prior to Trump's inauguration, 47 percent of Democrats believed that Russia interfered, while only 12 percent of Republicans did. This most recent poll shows that those numbers are up — 52 percent of Democrats, and 27 percent of Republicans, now believe Russia had a hand in the election.

The amount of people that believe that Russia is a serious threat to the United States has also fluctuated. In 2016, 15 percent of Democrats felt Russia was a threat. That number has grown to over 50 percent. The Republican numbers have actually declined. Where 30 percent of Republicans felt Russia was a threat in 2016,  only 24 percent still believe that.