Gallup Poll: Many Democrats Ready to Vote McCain if Their First Choice Doesn’t Make It to November
Many Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama supporters are ready to spurn the Democratic party and vote for John McCain in November if their candidate doesn’t win the presidential nomination, according to a new poll out Wednesday.
And a second poll out Wednesday shows most voters — including 85 percent of Democrats — believe there’s a chance that the battle between Clinton and Obama will not be resolved before the August convention.
Among people who identified themselves as Hillary Clinton supporters, 28 percent said they would vote for McCain if Obama is his opponent, the March 7-22 Gallup Poll Daily election tracking survey found.
The same poll found that 19 percent of Obama supporters would switch sides and cast ballots for McCain if Clinton is the Democratic candidate.
The survey interviewed 6,657 Democratic voters nationwide and had a margin of error of 2 percent.
Click here to read the Gallup Poll discussion of the survey.
Gallup analysts note that the results could change by November, by which time Democrats will have made great efforts to unify the party.
Gallup analysts also noted that voters tend to threaten party desertion but don’t necessarily do so. A recent Gallup survey found that 11 percent of Republican voters said they would vote for a different party or not at all if McCain doesn’t pick a running mate who is more conservative than he is.
Historically, the party-switch factor has shown to be less dramatic, Gallup analysts said. Less than 10 percent of Republicans and Democrats crossed party lines in pre-election Gallup polls from 1992 to 2004.
In the second poll, Rasmussen Reports found that 87 percent of all voters — and 85 percent of Democrats — believe it is “somewhat likely” that both Clinton and Obama will remain in the race until the convention. Fifty-two percent of Democrats said it is “very likely” the nomination won’t be decided until the convention.
The Rasmussen poll (March 24-25, 800 likely voters, +/- 4 percentage points) also found that there’s equal dislike on either side of the Democratic race for the rival candidate: 22 percent of both Clinton and Obama supporters said they believe the other candidate should drop out of the race.
I am a democrat but I will NEVER vote for Obama. If Hillary is not the nominee I will vote for McCain. Hillary is what this country needs! Obama will not help the people like Hillary will.
OK let me look at the picture, Obama racial upbringing, racial ties for 20 pus, wife never been proud of usa until he might be next president. Not going to happen, maybe 4 to 8 yrs from now. Picture,
clinton dont want to bore u with 15 yrs. of this behavior, its just to unbeleivabla. McCain , so ok but he doesnt scare me as much as the other 2. Hey McCain Romney for vp. very smart man.
I am young black male, who things that it is kind of funny how people are quick to hang obama. For his pastor first amendment right to free speech. but would defend hillary on her right to lie to the america people. I dont know if he would make a good president but what i do know is i am willing to make a change. I am not looking for 4 more years of the same or someone who will never tell use the truth. I love my country but sometimes i think to myself goddamn America why do we think that we are so much better any other country.
It is interesting to hear people say that Obama is dirty when everybody else left in the race is equally or more corrupt than Obama. It is also interesting to hear people talk of Obama having no real plan-and then mention that they are going to support McCain-who so far as I can tell has no plan.
To me that fact is that Hillary and McCain are pawns of a greater agenda of societies like the Council on Foreign Relations, Military Industial Complex, etc. Obama? He just might not be-but could be.
In short, voting for McCain or Hillary is a vote for the Establishment class that care nothing for us, use us to forward their personal and political objectives despite how it will affect us, and ultamately operate with the notion that they will have to do a little something-or appear to be trying-in order to keep us compliant. Obama just might not be that sort of candidate but the other ones are sure to be the sort of candidate I described in the former so he’ll get my vote. Surely many of you will think I am crazy-or a conspiracy theoriest, or a communist, maybe even a terrorist apologist. The fact is I think outside the box and do my research. Before dismissing this comment do some research with a source you wouldn’t normally use and see how it goes.
I am a Southerner, and I am supporting Obama. If Hilary is the candidate, I will vote for Ralph Nader. Even if Dems change the election laws to prevent him from being on the ballot, I will write him in. Hilary CAN NOT win the South. Barack does have a chance. Hilary is hated in the South, even by many Liberals.
Hang in there Hillary! I too would have been happy to vote for either of the candidates, but the more I hear and see of Obama bin Laden there is no way I would vote for him. Inexperience and the American discrimination turns me off. I wouldn’t vote for McCain either, so if Hillary is not an option, I’ll be staying home.
I’m a Clinton supporter, partly because I cannot vote for Obama. The more I get to know him, the more he strikes me as slick and hypocritical. When you call someone onstage to say the negative stuff on your behalf (McPeak), you are a. unable to make a stand on your own, b. trying to have it both ways. He said he would conduct a different kind of campaign. Well, for the past two weeks, he has looked more and more like a traditional, hack-style politician. The emperor has shed his clothes. I will vote for McCain come November, if I vote at all.
I am a Hillary supporter, PhD physicist at a national laboratory and there is no WAY I would “hire” Obama to run this country. He has shown ignorance and poor judgment on foreign policy and national defense and wants to raid the NASA budget to fund his other programs.
Hillary or McCain for me.
Under no circumstance, including the netherworld freezing over, will I vote for Sen. Obama. He is a lying racist crook. I detest Sen. McCain: he is no moderate as described, but I’ll vote for him to teach the DNC a lesson. DNC: YOU DON”T TELL ME FOR WHOM TO VOTE. This is America. Everyone is supposed to vote and their vote is supposed to count. It’s bad enough to wait until May 6 and have just 2 candidates to choose from. Dean doesn’t even want me to have that. Take a hike, Dean! Sen.Clinton in N.C.!
Whatever your party affiliation your choices should be either McCain or Hillary. Of course, neither are perfect and they have made some questionable choices but at least we know what they are capable of and we have on good authority that they care about this country. We have no clue who Obama is other than he can deliver a good speech and looks great on camera. It worries me that so many are calling him a unifier without any information to back it up. Is it because he or the multitude of celebrities say so or are there some specific examples that the rest of us missed? This isn’t meant to disrespect him, but we have a duty to honor our voting privileges by making sure that we know as much about our candidates as we possibly can. Let’s let Obama actually do some work and then revisit his candidacy 4 or 8 years from now.