Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Email to a Friend

Barack Obama has substantially widened his lead over John McCain in Maine since capturing the Democratic presidential nomination from Hillary Clinton.

According to the latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of Maine voters, Obama now leads his Republican opponent 55% to 33%. In May, Obama enjoyed a 51% to 38% lead, but a month earlier was only ahead by eight points.

Similarly, Obama’s favorability ratings have jumped considerably over the past month. The percentage of voters who view him favorably has risen six points to 63%. He is viewed unfavorably by 34%. McCain’s numbers have remained steady. He is viewed favorably by 51% and unfavorably by 45%.

Maine has cast its four Electoral College votes for the Democratic candidate in the last four presidential elections. In 2004, John Kerry won the state over George W. Bush by nine percentage points. The state is classified as “Likely Democratic” in the Rasmussen Reports Balance of Power Calculator.

In the new survey, Obama has a thirty-six percentage point lead over his GOP rival among women voters, but just a seven-point advantage among men.

Obama earns support from 79% of Democrats – up from 70% last month when Clinton was still in the race -- and 19% of Republicans.

McCain is supported by 69% of Republicans and 10% of Democrats in the state. His support among Democrats has dropped from 19% last month.

Among unaffiliated voters, Obama leads 57% to 30%, up 10 percentage points since last month.

The survey also found that nearly half of voters (49%) do not think Hillary Clinton should be Obama’s running mate in the election. Thirty-one percent (31%) disagree.

The majority of voters (64%) in Maine do not believe McCain is too old to be president, and just over half (53%) say Obama is not too inexperienced for the White House.

When it comes to the war in Iraq, the top priority for most Maine voters (62%) is bringing the troops home, but 31% think winning the war is more important.

The poll also found that the majority of voters (69%) believe the government has become a special interest group, while 12% disagree. Those numbers are consistent with national sentiments [link.] Just 11% of Maine voters believe the government represents the will of the people, while 76% disagree. Those percentages are slightly more critical than the national average.

Thirty-eight percent (38%) of Maine voters believe free trade is good for the economy, while nearly an equal number (32%) say the opposite. A national poll released today found that voters nationwide were split on this question.

Most voters in Maine (68%) support the idea of drilling in offshore oil wells as a solution to the nation’s dependence on foreign oil. Nearly a quarter (23%) disagree and say this practice should not be allowed. Those numbers are similar to those found nationally. The plurality of Maine voters do not think the U.S. government should nationalize oil companies, while 34% take the opposing view.

See survey questions and toplines. Crosstabs available to Premium Members only.