Clinton, Trump Still Unpopular With Most Voters
Most voters still share unfavorable opinions of the two major party candidates for president.
Politics
Most Recent Releases
October 19, 2016
October 19, 2016
Voters Rate A Candidate's Policies More Important Than Character
Nearly half of voters still say their choice this presidential election will be the lesser of two evils, although Trump supporters feel that way more strongly than Clinton voters do. Fortunately for both major party candidates who have been beset with questions about their honesty and integrity, most voters put their policy positions ahead of their character.
October 18, 2016
Voters Show More Support For a No-Fly Zone in Syria
The nature of U.S. involvement in the ongoing war in Syria has been one of the key foreign policy issues this presidential election season, and most voters now favor a no-fly zone in the embattled country despite increasing concern that it may bring the United States into a military confrontation with Russia.
October 18, 2016
Most Say Media, Not Russians, Tilting the Election
Most voters aren’t buying the story that the Russians are trying to manipulate the election for Donald Trump but think the U.S. media is trying to swing things for Hillary Clinton.
October 17, 2016
Democrats See Russia As Bigger Danger Than GOP, Unaffiliateds Do
Donald Trump views radical Islamic terrorism as the number one threat to the United States and has contradicted many in the foreign policy establishment by saying Russia would make a good ally in fighting that threat. Republicans and Trump supporters strongly agree that radical Islam is the bigger threat, but Democrats and Clinton voters tend to rate Russia as just as big a danger.
October 14, 2016
Should Trump Drop Out of the Race?
A growing number of Republican officials are asking their party’s nominee Donald Trump to drop out of the presidential race, and one-out-of-four GOP voters think that's a good idea. Most do not, and Trump supporters overwhelmingly second that emotion.
October 13, 2016
Voters Don't Think They're Getting Good Return on Investment in UN
Following the news that the United Nations has appointed a new secretary general, voters say they like the UN, but don’t necessarily agree it’s worth the cost to the United States.
October 13, 2016
Voters Don’t Trust Feds To Protect Election System From Hackers
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has confirmed hacking attempts on election systems in more than 20 states and has offered to provide states free testing of their systems before Election Day. While most voters are concerned about their state’s election system being hacked, they think state and local officials will do a better job protecting their vote than the feds will.
October 13, 2016
Voters Rate Bill Clinton's Behavior Toward Women Worse Than Trump's
Hillary Clinton jumped on the release last week of an 11-year-old video in which Donald Trump makes graphic sexual comments to say it shows her Republican rival's demeaning attitude toward women. But Trump countered that Clinton was an enabler who allowed her husband, former President Bill Clinton, to sexually assault women for years. Voters tend to agree with Trump that Bill Clinton's behavior was worse, but not surprisingly there's a sharp partisan difference of opinion.
October 12, 2016
Most Republicans Say GOP Leaders Hurt Party With Criticism of Trump
Most Republican voters still think top GOP leaders are hurting the party with their continuing criticism of Donald Trump and are only slightly more convinced that those leaders want Trump to be president.
October 11, 2016
More Voters Waiting Until Election Day To Cast Ballots
While Democrats are still more likely than other voters to say they plan to vote early this year if their state allows it, voters overall are even more likely than they’ve been in the past to say they’ll wait until Election Day to cast their vote.
October 10, 2016
Fewer Voters Say They’ve Changed Their Vote After Watching Presidential Debates
Despite the media circus surrounding the presidential debates this year, voters are less likely than they’ve been in the past to say they’ve changed their vote based on the debates and that the debates are a good indicator of where the candidates stand on the issues.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds that 24% of Likely U.S. Voters say they’ve changed the way they were going to vote after watching the debates between presidential candidates. Most (70%) have not. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
(Want a free daily e-mail update ? If it's in the news, it's in our polls). Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter or Facebook.
The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on October 6 and 9, 2016 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.
October 10, 2016
The ‘D’ Word and the Debate
Discipline was the word for last night’s second presidential debate.
October 7, 2016
Few Believe Fed Chairman Is Independent of Obama
Donald Trump has repeatedly criticized Federal Reserve Board Chairman Janet Yellen for keeping interest rates low to prop up a weak economy for political reasons, an accusation the Fed strongly denies. But few voters believe the Fed chairman is actually the independent agent she is supposed to be by law.
October 6, 2016
Americans Admit 'Lone Wolf' Terrorists Tough to Stop
As attacks by radical Islamic terrorists proliferate, Americans acknowledge that little can be done to stop one person on a mission to kill.
October 6, 2016
Voters Say Trump’s Tax History Is Nothing Unusual in Business
The leak of Donald Trump’s 1995 income tax returns showing substantial financial losses that appear to have allowed him to avoid paying taxes for 18 years sent the media into a frenzy last week. But most voters say such behavior is par for the course in the business world and that a candidate’s policy positions are more important than how much he or she has paid in taxes.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds that 83% of Likely U.S. Voters believe that when most businessmen pay their taxes, they try to pay as little as possible. Only 12% feel they are more concerned with paying their fair share. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
(Want a free daily e-mail update? If it's in the news, it's in our polls). Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter or Facebook.
The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on October 4-5, 2016 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.
[Rasmussen Reports analysts Amy Holmes and Fran Coombs are available for interested media. Please call 732-776-9777 ext. 205 for interviews.]
October 5, 2016
Democrats Favor One-Party Rule More Than Republicans
When it comes to Washington, D.C., and the upcoming election, Democrats are more eager for the whole enchilada than Republicans are.
October 4, 2016
Are Americans Tuning Out the NFL Over Protests?
A sizable number of Americans say they may give the National Football League a pass this year, thanks to the player protests over racial issues.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds that nearly one-third (32%) of American Adults say they are less likely to watch an NFL game because of the growing number of Black Lives Matter protests by players on the field. Only 13% say they are more likely to watch a game because of the protests. Just over half (52%) say the protests have no impact on their viewing decisions. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
(Want a free daily e-mail update? If it's in the news, it's in our polls). Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter or Facebook.
The survey of 1,000 American Adults was conducted on October 2-3, 2016 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.
October 4, 2016
Voters Place More Importance on VP Debate
Indiana Governor Mike Pence and Tim Kaine, a U.S. senator for Virginia, are set to square off in their first and only vice presidential debate tonight. Voters are a bit more likely to say the debate is important to their vote compared to the previous election, putting it nearly even with the presidential debates in that regard.
October 3, 2016
Most Say Their Politics Aren’t Influenced By Social Media
Most voters regularly use social media sites, but they insist that their political views aren’t shaped by what their friends and family post online.
