Poll Tracker

Fifty-two percent of Americans following the spectacle of the now-we-fill-it, now-we-don't Illinois Senate seat say the right thing to do is hold a special election as soon as possible, rather than accepting Gov. Rod Blagojevich's appointment of Roland Burris or letting the seat stay open until the issue is resolved, according to a Gallup poll conducted Jan. 5.

Only 16 percent favor letting Burris, the state's former attorney general, serve until 2010 and 23 percent said the seat should remain open until the issue of whether the appointment should stand is resolved.

Looking at the controversy along partisan lines, 61 percent of Republicans said the Senate should block Burris from filling the seat while pluralities of 49 percent of Democrats and 46 percent of independents feel the same way. Republicans feel the strongest that the seat should be filled by holding a special election as soon as possible.