Trust on Issues
Democrats Trusted More on All Ten Electoral Issues Tracked by Rasmussen Reports
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
American voters now trust the Democrats on all ten key electoral issues tracked regularly by Rasmussen Reports. Last month, the GOP’s had an advantage on two issues.
Not surprisingly, the economy is still seen as the most important issue in this year’s presidential campaign--76% of voters say it is a Very Important issue. The Democrats now have a 14-point advantage over the Republicans on this issue, up from eight-points a month ago. Data from the Rasmussen Consumer Index shows that consumer confidence is currently hovering near record lows. Not only is confidence low, three-out-of-four Americans believe that economic conditions are getting worse.
Government Ethics and Corruption is a Very Important issue for 71% of Likely Voters. The Democrats have a huge advantage on this issue—45% now trust them while just 26% prefer the GOP. That lead has also widened since last month, when the Democrats had only a six-point advantage.
Perhaps the biggest surprise comes from the fact that Democrats are now trusted more when it comes to National Security and the War on Terror, an issue long considered a GOP stronghold. The latest polling, however, shows that 49% of voters now trust the Democrats more on this issue while 42% trust the Republicans more. This shift comes at the same time that confidence in the War on Terror has fallen significantly.
Each month, Rasmussen Reports asks likely voters to rank the importance of ten electoral issues and which of the two major parties they trust more on these issues. The Democrats have been dominant on most issues throughout the past two years. It should be noted, however, that these general perceptions are likely to have a bigger impact on Congressional races rather than the Presidential election. While voters tend to prefer Democrats over Republicans on a generic basis, John McCain consistently outperforms the GOP brand. In fact, polling shows that he is trusted more than either Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton on key issues such as the economy and national security.
The trust on issues data reflects another significant trend of Election 2008—there is a growing number of people who consider themselves to be Democrats. In fact, the Democrats now have the largest partisan advantage over the Republicans since Rasmussen Reports began tracking this data on a monthly basis nearly six years ago.
Another issue the Republicans used to be trusted more on was taxes. Last month, the GOP’s had a four-point lead over the Democrats on this issue. This month, they have fallen behind to a five-point deficit. Taxes are a very important issue for 57% of voters.
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http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/mood_of_america/trust_on_issues/trust_on_issues