Only 9% Give Congress Positive Marks
Ratings for Congress are up slightly from the record lows of the past two months, but most voters still think it's doing a poor job. They're also a bit less convinced that most members of Congress are corrupt.
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September 27, 2011
September 26, 2011
Generic Congressional Ballot: Republicans 42%, Democrats 40%
Republicans hold just a two-point advantage over Democrats on the Generic Congressional Ballot for the week ending Sunday, September 25. That is the highest level of support for Democrats in nearly three months and ties the narrowest margin between the two parties in the last two years.
September 26, 2011
Obama 44%, Perry 38%
While Texas Governor Rick Perry has been widely criticized for his debate performance last Thursday in Florida, that criticism doesn't seem to have moved the numbers in a hypothetical Election 2012 matchup with President Obama. The president still holds a single-digit lead over the frontrunner in the GOP primary race.
September 23, 2011
New Hampshire GOP Primary: Romney 39%, Perry 18%, Paul 13%
Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney is the runaway leader in the race for the 2012 Republican nomination in New Hampshire, home of next year’s first presidential primary.
September 22, 2011
33% Give Supreme Court Positive Ratings
While voters continue to give the U.S. Supreme Court’s job performance lukewarm reviews, they are a bit less likely to say the justices are too politically liberal.
The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey of Likely Voters shows that 33% say the Supreme Court is doing a good or excellent job, with only three percent (3%) who give the high court an excellent grade. Nineteen percent (19%) give the Supreme Court a poor rating. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
Positive ratings for the high court are only slightly below results found in June, but are just three points above the all-time low of 30% measured in late March. The court's good/excellent ratings have generally run in the mid-to upper 30s in surveying since November 2006.
Now, 30% of voters believe the Supreme Court is too politically liberal, down just a point from June but the lowest finding since the question was first posed in July 2009. Twenty-seven percent (27%) believe the high court is too politically conservative, which ties the highest level in two years. Another 27% say the court’s ideology is about right, a finding that has ranged from 27% to 42%. Fifteen percent (15%) more are undecided.
(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 September 20-21, 2011 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.
September 22, 2011
Voters Trust Republicans More Than Democrats on Economy
Republicans are still trusted more than Democrats to handle the number one issue on voters’ minds, the economy. But the parties are now essentially tied on six out of ten important issues.
September 21, 2011
19% Say U.S. Heading In Right Direction
Nineteen percent (19%) of Likely U.S. Voters now say the country is heading in the right direction, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey taken the week ending Sunday, September 18.
September 21, 2011
National GOP Primary: Perry 28%, Romney 24%
As of now, the 2012 Republican Presidential Primary race is all about Texas Governor Rick Perry and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, with no other candidate reaching double-digit support.
September 20, 2011
Obama 44%, Romney 41%
President Obama and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney continue to run neck-and-neck in a hypothetical Election 2012 matchup.
September 19, 2011
Generic Congressional Ballot: Republicans 42%, Democrats 39%
Republicans hold just a three-point advantage over Democrats on the Generic Congressional Ballot for the week ending Sunday, September 18. That’s the narrowest margin between the two parties since the first week in August.
September 19, 2011
Obama 43%, Huntsman 35%
Former Utah Governor Jon Huntsman is having difficulty gaining traction in the race for the Republican presidential nomination, but he fares about the same as some of the top GOP contenders in a hypothetical matchup with President Obama.
September 19, 2011
56% Favor Repeal of Health Care Law, 52% Say Law Is Bad for the Country
Most voters continue to favor repeal of the national health care law and view the law as bad for the country.
September 14, 2011
17% Say U.S. Heading In Right Direction
Seventeen percent (17%) of Likely U.S. Voters now say the country is heading in the right direction, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey taken the week ending Sunday, September 11.
September 12, 2011
Generic Congressional Ballot: Republicans 43%, Democrats 38%
Republicans post a five-point advantage over Democrats on the Generic Congressional Ballot for the week ending Sunday, September 11. The GOP has led on the ballot every week since June 2009.
September 12, 2011
Voters See Congressional GOP as More Partisan Than Democrats
Most voters continue to lack confidence in members of Congress reaching across the political aisle, but they feel Democrats are doing a better job at bipartisanship than Republicans are.
September 12, 2011
50% Say U.S. Safer Today Than Before 9/11
One-out-of-two voters are confident that America is safer today than it was before the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
September 7, 2011
18% Say U.S. Heading In Right Direction
Eighteen percent (18%) of Likely U.S. Voters now say the country is heading in the right direction, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey taken the week ending Sunday, September 4.
September 5, 2011
Generic Congressional Ballot: Republicans 44%, Democrats 37%
Republicans post a seven-point lead over Democrats on the Generic Congressional Ballot for the week ending Sunday, September 4. The GOP has led on the ballot every week since June 2009.
September 5, 2011
57% Favor Health Care Repeal, 54% Say Repeal Likely
Most voters still want to repeal the national health care law and are more confident than ever that the law actually will be repealed.
September 2, 2011
59% Don't Like Pelosi, 41% Say Same of Boehner
Congress will return from its August recess next Tuesday, and its top leaders will come back just as disliked as when they left.
