American voters believe President Donald Trump's main motivation for military action in Venezuela is to grab the country's oil, a new Daily Mail poll found. 

That was the top answer in a J.L. Partners online poll conducted on Monday and Tuesday of this week among 999 registered voters.

Overall, 39 per cent said Trump green-lit a military operation to capture Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro to get access to the South American country's vast oil reserves.

Another 30 per cent said the move was to stop the flow of illicit drugs, while 17 per cent of registered voters said it was to remove an illegitimate leader.

The United States recognized Maduro's opponent Edmundo González as the president-elect of the country in November 2024, during President Joe Biden's administration, yet Maduro stayed in power until his Saturday arrest. 

Democrats were more likely to pick 'oil' as Trump's motivation than their Republican counterparts, the survey found.

When the responses were divided by party preference, 59 per cent of Democrats said Trump did it for the oil, compared to 17 per cent of Republicans and 38 per cent of independents.

Republicans were most likely to believe the White House's explanation that Maduro needed to go due to his widespread drug trafficking. 

48 per cent of Republicans named drugs as the top reason for the military action, with just 14 per cent of Democrats agreeing. 

30 per cent of independents also named drugs. 

After drugs, the second biggest group of Republicans said Trump was motivated to remove an illegitimate ruler. 

26 per cent of GOP voters believed this to be the case, versus 16 per cent of independents and just 9 per cent of Democrats.

Republicans were the least likely to believe Trump deposed Maduro over oil. 

When respondents were asked if they were OK with the idea that the military action was motivated by oil, a majority - 52 per cent - said they weren't. 

Another 29 per cent said it is OK if the U.S. involvement in Venezuela was over oil, while 20 per cent answered that they were unsure.

When that question was broken down by party, Republicans were much more tolerant of the U.S. going into Venezuela for oil, while Democrats and independents were largely in agreement that they were not. 

52 per cent of Republicans were OK with the U.S. going into Venezuela over oil, compared to 20 per cent of independents and 16 per cent of Democrats.

On the flip side, 67 per cent of Democrats were not OK with the U.S. going into Venezuela over oil, which was nearly in line with the 56 per cent of independents who agreed. 

Just 29 per cent of Republicans didn't think it was OK for the U.S. to get militarily involved in Venezuela over oil. 

Voters were also asked what they think should happen next. 

The top choice for Democrats and independents was that the opposition, who won the 2024 elections, should take over. 

35 per cent of Democrats and 29 per cent of independents polled gave this answer. 

Trump has reportedly brushed off the idea of Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado leading the country because she accepted this year's Nobel Peace Prize, which the U.S. president coveted. 

Republicans' top choice was that the U.S. should run the country until new elections are held, with 33 per cent of GOP voters surveyed holding this view.

The second most popular answer among Republicans was also that the opposition leaders would be put in charge, with 24 per cent in agreement. 

Across the board, Republicans, Democrats and independents preferred that the current Venezuelan government continue to rule rather than support a long-term U.S. occupation. 

23 per cent of Democrats, 16 per cent of independents and 14 per cent of Republicans selected the current regime, whereas 7 per cent of Democrats, 9 per cent of independents and 13 per cent of Republicans wished to see the U.S. occupy Venezuela indefinitely.