Posted Apr 01, 2010 at 9:56 AM by Maurice Berger
Sarah Palin remains a polarizing figure in American politics, according to a new Washington
Post poll. She's remains popular with those respondents who view the Tea Party movement
favorably--with a 60% favorable rating--as well as conservative Republicans, garnering a whopping 71% positive rating. At the other end of the spectrum, 85% of liberal DEmocrats have an unfavorable view of the former Alaska Governor and 2008 Vice-Presidential candidate. Overall, 55% of Americans say they view Palin unfavorably.
Tagged: 2010, Democratic Party, Republican Party, conservative voters, liberal, Sarah Palin, Tea Party
Posted Feb 04, 2010 at 10:08 AM by Maurice Berger
A new Gallup survey reports that "three U.S. states in the Deep South -- Alabama (49%), Mississippi
(48%), and Louisiana (48%) -- had the greatest percentage of residents
self-identifying as conservatives in 2009. Aside from the District of
Columbia, which has the greatest proportion of liberals, conservatives
outnumbered liberals in every state." For more, click here. Here's Gallup's chart of the most "Liberal"/ "Conservative" states:
Tagged: 2010, liberal, conservative voters
Posted Jan 15, 2010 at 8:53 AM by Maurice Berger
Despite the inroads made by Democrats in recent years--and the historic election of Barack Obama as president--more Americans consider themselves conservative relative to other political mindsets: "The increased conservatism . . . identified among Americans
last June persisted throughout the year, so that the final year-end
political ideology figures confirm Gallup’s initial reporting:
conservatives (40%) outnumbered both moderates (36%) and liberals (21%)
across the nation in 2009." PollTrack points out that the combined total of moderates and liberals--now at 61%--far outnumbers conservatives. So it's hard to say if Gallup figure has broader meaning relative to changes in the electorate.
Tagged: 2010, conservative voters, liberal, moderate voters
Posted Aug 06, 2009 at 10:10 AM by Maurice Berger
According to a new Rasmussen survey, "76% of U.S. voters now think President Obama is at least somewhat liberal. 48% say he is very liberal . . This marks the highest
finding to date on the question and is a five-point increase in the number who
say the president is very liberal from a month ago.
Tagged: 2009, President Barack Obama, liberal, voter expectations
Posted Jun 17, 2009 at 9:41 AM by Maurice Berger
How do Americans rate themselves on the ideological spectrum. According to a new Gallup poll, those calling themselves "conservative" have a slight edge. Gallup writes:
"Thus far in 2009, 40% of Americans interviewed . . . describe their political views as conservative, 35% as moderate, and 21% as
liberal. This represents a slight increase for conservatism in the U.S. since
2008, returning it to a level last seen in 2004. The 21% calling themselves
liberal is in line with findings throughout this decade, but is up from the
1990s."
Tagged: 2009, conservative voters, Independent Voters, liberal, public opinion polls
Posted Jun 09, 2009 at 9:53 AM by Maurice Berger
The nation is becoming increasingly friendly to the idea of gay rights and equality, as a recent Galup poll that measures attitudes about homosexuals serving openly in the military suggests: "Americans are six percentage points more likely than they were four
years ago to favor allowing openly gay men and lesbian women to serve
in the military, 69% to 63%. While liberals and Democrats remain the
most supportive, the biggest increase in support has been among
conservatives and weekly churchgoers -- up 12 and 11 percentage points,
respectively."
Gallup's analysis continues: "The finding that majorities of weekly churchgoers (60%), conservatives
(58%), and Republicans (58%) now favor what essentially equates to
repealing the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy implemented under
President Clinton in 1993 is noteworthy for several reasons. First, the
data show that these traditionally conservative groups are shifting on
this issue, supporting it to a far greater extent than they support legalized gay marriage.
Second, it suggests the political playing field may be softer on this
issue, and President Barack Obama will be well-positioned to forge
ahead with his campaign promise to end the military ban on openly gay
service members with some support from more conservative segments of
the population. To date, it is estimated that more than 12,500
servicemen and servicewomen have been discharged under the policy,
including more than 200 since Obama took office."
Tagged: 2009, homosexuality, gay rights, military, conservative voters, liberal
Posted Feb 06, 2009 at 8:44 AM by Maurice Berger
The "L-Word"--Liberal--may be more popular now than at any time since since Ronald Reagan assumed the presidency in 1980. According to a new poll, "71% of American voters now view
President Obama as politically liberal, including 42% who say he is Very
Liberal. The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey found that 23%
see him as politically moderate and just 2% see him as somewhat or very
conservative. The number seeing Obama as politically liberal is up six
points over the past month and is also the highest yet recorded. When he first
wrapped up the Democratic Presidential nomination, 61% of American voters viewed
Obama as politically liberal. On the eve of his election, 66% held that view." Given the president's relative high approval rating, it does not look like the laberal label is a problem for him.
Tagged: President Barack Obama, liberal
