Bill Clinton has campaigned aggressively on behalf of his wife during Election 2008. Forty-three percent (43%) of Americans believe that his behavior during the campaign will hurt his reputation in history. Just 17% believe his reputation will be helped while 29% say it will have no impact.

These views are found across demographic and partisan lines. Among Democrats, just 22% believe Clinton’s campaigning will help his reputation while 41% believe just the opposite. There is virtually no gender gap on the issue—17% of men and 17% of women believe he has helped his reputation. Forty-six percent (46%) of men and 41% of women hold the opposite view.

Among African-Americans, 11% say the former President has helped his reputation while 43% say he has hurt his legacy. For White Americans, 18% believe he has helped his reputation while 45% take the opposite view.

Younger adults are less pessimistic about the impact when compared to their elders. Among the youngest adults, those under 30, 27% say Bill Clinton has helped his reputation while 40% say he has hurt it. Among senior citizens, those numbers are 11% and 48% respectively.

Lower income adults are also more likely than higher-income Americans to offer a positive assessment of the former President’s role in Election 2008.

Investors and married Americans offer a somewhat more pessimistic assessment than those who do not invest and those who are not married.

Senator Hillary Clinton, the former First Lady, remains competitive with Barack Obama nationally in the Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll.

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