Love/Hate in New Jersey

by: Thurman Hart

Tue Jan 22, 2008 at 09:32:48 PM EST

New Jersey voters chose Senator Hillary Clinton as the candidate they?d be the most likely and most unlikely to support in the general election, according to a new study from Fairleigh Dickinson University?s PublicMind. In a survey conducted from January 14 through January 20, likely primary voters, regardless of party affiliation, were asked who among the field of candidates they are most likely and most unlikely to support for president. Clinton tops both lists with 25 and 27 percent, respectively.

Wow.  It would seem that for every person who really wants to vote for Hillary there is someone waiting to vote for ANYONE else.  What a great candidate!  Jump with me for more insights.

Women are more likely to pick Hillary as their preferred candidate - 30% to 20% for men.  And it is among women that Hillary builds her lead.  Barack Obama also has 20% support among men - as does "Don't Know".  But among women, Obama's support drops to 16% - almost half of Hillary's - and "Don't Know rises to 26%.

Between age cohorts, it is young voters - under 30 - that break heavily for Hillary.  In that category, she leads Barack Obama 40-25.  She leads in all other age groups as well, but only by single digits.  The under 30 age group is the only one where her support significantly exceeds "Don't Know".

On the other side, 30% of men and 25% of women listed her as the one they'd least likely support.  Hatred for Hillary is spread fairly evenly among the age-groups.  More than a quarter of each age group listed her as their least favorite.  

What does all of that mean?  I dunno.  Nothing probably - except that Hillary Clinton is an incredibly polarizing figure.  About the same as George W. Bush, actually.  The same poll found that 20% of New Jerseyans approve of the job our President is doing (I'm guessing by "job" they mean "President").  24% said that going into Iraq was "the right thing", too.  So there you go.

What I find truly amazing is that 16% of those polled think the country "is moving in the right direction".  You gotta wonder what country they are talking about.  I mean, just today the Fed took emergency action to prevent a complete catastrophic failure in the stock market.  We are in the middle of the worst housing crisis in 60 years.  Racial injustice remains a fact of life.  Wages are lagging behind the cost of living.

Who the hell would say this is "the right direction"?