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Twenty-nine percent (29%) of Likely U.S. Voters say the country is heading in the right direction, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey taken the week ending Sunday, February 5.
The latest finding shows no change from the previous week, the highest level of optimism measured in weekly tracking since May of last year. From July 25 through December 11 of last year, the number of voters who were confident in the nation's current course resembled levels measured in the final months of the Bush administration, with voter confidence remaining in the narrow range of 14% to 19%. But that finding has climbed steadily since then.
The national telephone survey of 3,500 Likely Voters was conducted by Rasmussen Reports January 30-February 5, 2012. The margin of sampling error for the survey is +/- 2 percentage point with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.
TOP STORIES
Voters continue to trust Republicans more than Democrats on the number one issue of the economy, but they now trust Democrats at least slightly more on five of the 10 most important issues regularly tracked by Rasmussen Reports. The two parties are nearly tied on five of the 10, though. This is the first survey since May 2009 in which the GOP doesn't have an edge on a majority of the issues.
The latest national telephone survey finds that 47% of Likely U.S. Voters trust the GOP more when it comes to handling the economy, while 40% have more faith in President Obama's party. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
(Want a free daily e-mail update? If it's in the news, it's in our polls). Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter or Facebook.
Two national surveys of 1,000 Likely Voters each were conducted on January 23-24 & 25-26, 2012 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.
The number of Republicans in the country inched up half a percentage point in January, while the number of Democrats dipped to the lowest level ever recorded by Rasmussen Reports.
During January, 35.9% of Americans considered themselves Republicans. That’s up from 35.4% in December and the highest number of Republicans measured since December 2010.
Rasmussen Reports tracks this information based on telephone interviews with approximately 15,000 adults per month and has been doing so since November 2002. The margin of error for the full sample is less than one percentage point, with a 95% level of confidence.
With the start of the New Year, voters are slightly more optimistic about the future of America than they have been for most of 2011.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 38% of Likely Voters say the country's best days are in the future, up from 32% last month and the highest level measured since mid-February of last year. Forty-four percent (44%) feel America's best days are in the past, while another 18% are not sure. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
(Want a free daily e-mail update? If it's in the news, it's in our polls). Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter or Facebook .
The national survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on January 11-12, 2012 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.
BUSINESS & ECONOMY
The Rasmussen Consumer Index, which measures the economic confidence of consumers on a daily basis, dropped two points on Saturday to 86.7. Consumer confidence increased following the government's upbeat report on job creation, peaking at 93.1 on Tuesday, the highest level measured in over a year. The index has slipped several points since that peak. Confidence is up two points from a week ago, one point from a month ago and 14 points from three months ago.
Americans' ongoing uneasiness about their finances is putting some cracks in how they feel about their retirement nest eggs. The COUNTRY Financial Security Index® dropped one point to 63.7 in June, in part because confidence in retirement reached an all-time low.
POLITICS
The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Saturday shows that 26% of the nation's voters Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as president. Thirty-nine percent (39%) Strongly Disapprove, giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of -13 (see trends).
Republicans have regained the lead over Democrats on the Generic Congressional Ballot for the week ending Sunday, Feb. 5.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 43% of Likely U.S. Voters would vote for the Republican in their district’s congressional race if the election were held today, while 41% would choose the Democrat instead.
The national telephone survey of 3,500 Likely Voters was conducted by Rasmussen Reports from January 30-February 5, 2012. The margin of sampling error for the survey is +/- 2 percentage point with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.
In the final full month of his Presidency, just 13% of American adults said they Strongly Approved of the way that George W. Bush performed his job as president. Forty-three percent (43%) Strongly Disapproved.
LIFESTYLE
Newspaper circulation has been eroding, television audiences shrinking, and reporters sent looking for work. But, while mainstream journalists and their companies struggle with the realities of an online world, consumers of journalism are pleased with the results.
October 11th is Columbus Day—the holiday honoring the anniversary of the October 12, 1492 arrival of Christopher Columbus to the Americas. A recent Rasmussen Reports survey found that only 11% declare Columbus Day as one of the nation’s most important holidays.
