These poll numbers were released earlier today by Rasmussen Reports -- "an electronic publishing firm specializing in the collection, publication, and distribution of public opinion polling information."
87% Say America Likely To Elect Woman President in Next 25 Years
Monday, July 26, 2010
Eighty-seven percent (87%) of U.S. voters say it is at least somewhat likely that a woman will be elected president of the United Sates in the next 25 years, up eight points from nearly four years ago . Fifty-eight percent (58%) say it is Very Likely.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey of Likely Voters finds that just 11% think it is unlikely a woman will be elected to the White House, with three percent (3%) who say it's not at all likely.
If the choice between two candidates for office was a man and a woman and all other things about them were equal, 30% say they would vote for the man, while 32% would vote for the woman. Thirty-eight percent (38%) are not sure.
Perhaps not surprisingly, men would be more likely to vote for the male candidate, while women would be more likely to support the female.
If the choice was between a Republican woman and a Democratic man, 45% of all voters would vote for the female candidate, and 35% would support the male. Twenty percent (20%) are undecided.
Given that scenario, however, male voters by a 52% to 30% margin prefer the Republican woman. Voters not affiliated with either of the major parties favor the GOP woman by a two-to-one margin. It is important to note, however, that this question like all the others did not specify any male or female candidates by name.
The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on July 22-23, 2010 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 .
Just 14% consider describing a woman candidate as a feminist to be a positive. Thirty-five percent (35%) view it as a negative description, while 46% rate it somewhere in between a positive and a negative.
Historically, the National Organization for Women has been an outspoken champion of women's rights, but many conservative women regard the group as liberal and Democratic in its focus. Forty-five percent (45%) of all voters have at least a somewhat favorable opinion of NOW, while 39% regard it unfavorably. This includes 10% with a Very Favorable view and 20% with a Very Unfavorable one.
Among women voters, 51% view NOW favorably, while 32% have an unfavorable opinion.
In December 2006 , 79% of voters nationwide said a woman was likely to be elected president in the next 25 years, with 48% who said it was Very Likely. Seventy-eight percent (78%) said they were personally willing to vote for a woman, but only 51% believed their family, friends and co-workers were willing to do the same.
By February 2008 , with Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama facing off for the Democratic presidential nomination, the number willing to vote for a woman for president had fallen off slightly to 71%.
There's little partisan disagreement over the likelihood of a woman president in the next 25 years. But in a matchup between a male and female candidate, a plurality (43%) of Republicans would vote for the man, while the identical plurality (43%) of Democrats would support the woman. Unaffiliated voters are more closely divided.
GOP voters and unaffiliateds tend to view describing a candidate as a feminist as more negative than Democrats do.
Similarly, 66% of Democrats have a favorable opinion of NOW, while 54% of Republicans view the organization unfavorably. Unaffiliated voters are almost evenly divided.
As is often the case, there are sharp differences between the Political Class and Mainstream voters.
While 55% of Mainstream voters would choose a female Republican candidate over a male Democratic candidate, 72% of the Political Class would opt for the latter.
Nearly three-out-of-four Political Class voters (73%) have a favorable view of NOW, while Mainstream voters are evenly divided in their opinions of the group.
Voters think Hillary Clinton is more qualified to be president than Barack Obama , but most believe that both Democrats are more fit for the White House than three top Republicans interested in the job, including former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin.
Sixty-four percent (64%) of all voters say it is at least somewhat likely that the next president will be a Republican , with 40% who say it is Very Likely. But it's important to note that the question does not say whether this president will be elected in 2012 or 2016.
Seventy-two percent (72%) of Republican voters continue to believe that GOP members of Congress have lost touch with the party base throughout the nation over the past several years. But 59% of Republican voters believes Palin shares the values of most GOP voters throughout the nation.
Most adults believe women in America are better off today than they were 25 years ago , but they still don't think women receive equal pay for equal work.