Twenty-four percent (24%) of U.S. voters now say they consider themselves a part of the Tea Party movement, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey. That’s an eight-point increase from 16% a month ago.

Another 10% say they are not a part of the movement but have close friends or family members who are.

Fifty-five percent (55%) of voters say they have no ties to the Tea Party movement. Eleven percent (11%) more are not sure.

The rise in Tea party support is perhaps not surprising at a time when more voters than ever (58%) favor repeal of the national health care plan just passed by Democrats in Congress and signed into law by President Obama. Most voters remain convinced that the health care plan will require an increase in taxes on the middle class as a time when 66% of voters believe America is already overtaxed.

Forty-two percent (42%) of Republicans say they are part of the movement, compared to nine percent (9%) of Democrats and 24% of voters not affiliated with either major party. Thirty-five percent (35%) of Mainstream voters view themselves as Tea Party members, while 84% of the Political Class say they have no ties to the movement.

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Voters remain closely divided in their views of the movement which formally came to life a year ago on Tax Day, April 15, to protest the high-tax, big-government policies of both major political parties. Forty percent (40%) have a favorable opinion of the Tea Party movement, while 42% view the protest movement unfavorably. Eighteen percent (18%) are undecided.

These numbers are virtually unchanged from March. However, views of the movement have declined slightly over the past year. Just days after they were held last April, 51% of Americans had a favorable view of the “tea parties” held nationwide, including 32% who said their view of the events was very favorable.

Seventy percent (70%) of Republican voters view the Tea Party movement favorably. Seventy-one percent (71%) of Democrats do not. Unaffiliated voters are almost evenly divided in their views.

More noticeably, 96% of the Political Class regard the Tea Party movement unfavorably, while 58% of Mainstream voters have a favorable opinion of the movement.

When it comes to major issues confronting the nation, 48% of voters now say the average Tea Party member is closer to their views than President Obama is. Forty-four percent (44%) hold the opposite view and believe the president’s views are closer to their own.

Fifty-two percent (52%) believe the average member of the Tea Party movement has a better understanding of the issues facing America today than the average member of Congress.

Tea Party voters are changing the equation in several closely-watched Senate races, including Nevada where Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is struggling for reelection and Florida’s Republican Primary where Marco Rubio is far outdistancing establishment candidate Governor Charlie Crist.

Thirty-five percent (35%) of voters now think Republicans and Democrats are so much alike that an entirely new political party is needed to represent the American people. Nearly half (47%) of voters disagree and say a new party is not needed

If the Tea Party was organized as a political party, 34% of voters would prefer a Democrat in a three-way congressional race. In that hypothetical match-up, the Republican gets 27% of the vote with the Tea Party hopeful in third at 21%. However, if only the Democrat or Republican had a real chance to win, most of the Tea Party supporters would vote for the Republican.

Just 21% of voters nationwide believe that the federal government now enjoys the consent of the governed.

In his new book, In Search of Self-Governance , Scott Rasmussen observes that the American people are “united in the belief that our political system is broken, that politicians are corrupt, and that neither major political party has the answers.” He adds that “the gap between Americans who want to govern themselves and the politicians who want to rule over them may be as big today as the gap between the colonies and England during the 18th century.”

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