New Poll: 2008 Republican Presidential Primary
Giuliani 25%
McCain 17%
Thompson 16%
Romney 12%
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
rasmussenreports.com
The race for the Republican Presidential nomination is getting closer. Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani remains on top, but his lead has fallen to single digits.
The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey shows Giuliani at 25%, eight points more than Arizona Senator John McCain’s 17%. Former Tennessee Senator Fred Thompson has not entered the race, but is just a single point behind McCain. Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney is at 12%, the only other candidate in double digits. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich remains in fifth place with 8% support.
Giuliani leads Thompson by four points among men and leads McCain by ten points among women.
It is interesting to note that 38% of Republican Primary Voters either express no preference or are supporting a candidate not in the running at this time (Gingrich or Thompson). That is just one indicator of how wide open the race for the GOP nomination remains.
Last week, Giuliani led McCain and Thompson by 16 percentage points.
Rasmussen Reports releases updated polling data on the Republican nominating contest every Tuesday. Results for the Democrats are updated on Mondays. The current survey is based upon national telephone interviews with 620 Likely Republican Primary Voters conducted April 30-May 3, 2007. Virtually all interviews for this survey were completed before last week’s debate featuring ten Republican candidates. The margin of sampling error is +/- 4 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence.
Fifty-eight percent (58%) of Americans believe the 2008 Presidential election has started too soon. An identical number, 58%, also believe it would be good for the United States if there were a truly competitive third party.
Giuliani remains the most popular candidate in either party—60% now have a favorable opinion of him. However, his support in the Republican Primary is now at the lowest level measured by Rasmussen Reports in any poll this year. In head-to-head match-ups, Giuliani continues to outperform other Republican hopefuls but has lost his lead against the Democratic frontrunner, Senator Hillary Clinton.
McCain is viewed favorably by 49% of all voters nationwide. Thompson and Romney are less well known, viewed favorably by 35% and 32% respectively. Congressman Ron Paul has the weakest ratings of any candidate participating in last week’s debate—14% favorable and 27% unfavorable. See continuously updated favorability ratings and general election match-ups for all Republican and Democratic candidates.
A separate survey found that Democrats have an 11-point advantage on the Generic Congressional Ballot. The number of Americans who consider themselves Republicans fell to a new low in April.
Democrats currently have public support on their side for the most significant issue of the day—Iraq. Most Americans favor either bringing all troops home from Iraq immediately or establishing a firm timetable for their withdrawal.
Americans are not shocked by a sex scandal among the political elite and are paying little attention to news stories about the DC Madam.
Rasmussen Reports conducts ongoing surveys measuring the attitudes of Americans on the news of the day. Recent surveys have asked about gun control, the Supreme Court decision on partial-birth abortion, the FDA and food safety, the CIA and George Tenet’s book, and the subpoena’s issued to Condoleezza Rice. The latest updates can be found on the Rasmussen Reports home page.
Rasmussen Reports also regularly tracks public attitudes towards Congress, the War on Terror, and other topics. Rasmussen Reports also continuously updates favorability ratings and general election match-ups for all Democratic and Republican Presidential candidates along with ratings for Members of Congress, Other Political Figures, and Journalists.
Rasmussen Reports releases updated polling data on the Democrat Nomination Process every Monday and on the Republican contest every Tuesday. Results for the Generic Congressional Ballot are updated monthly.
Rasmussen Reports is an electronic publishing firm specializing in the collection, publication, and distribution of public opinion polling information. |
