The Election according to Pew
There’s a reason that Andrew Kohut made GQ’s list of the 50 most powerful people in Washington; when Pew data comes in, people pay attention. And today, the Pew Center released some of the most powerful polling data yet in this campaign.
Sen. Clinton holds a 51%-43% advantage over Giuliani in a general election ballot test among all registered voters.
Much ado has been made about Clinton’s strong negatives going into a potential general election match-up, but in this poll, +- 3 points, Clinton even leads in the South.
The extent to which these numbers will hold steady is a gamble; Pew’s researchers even admit the opportunity for fluidity, as Politico’s Kuhn reports. Nonetheless the numbers do not disprove the notion that a Clinton candidacy–if the election were held today–would win the contest, or the other figures the survey shows (33% of Americans believe it would be “a good thing” for a female to hold the presidency; since 2004, voters’ have become more concerned about the issue of energy).
We are 64 days before the Iowa caucuses, but more than a year away from the general. As the adage goes, a lot can happen before next November. Pew’s director may have only made it to number 50 on the “most powerful” list. Careful readers should note: HRC was eighth.
November 3rd, 2007 at 6:08 am
I guess it matters not that Senator Clinton doesn’t come close to being the best equipped and most qualified person for the job. And that goes for all the frontrunner pretenders, too. Of course, not…why should it?