The Democratic strategy of casting the election as a referendum on Republican conduct and policy has given Democrats majority control of Congress. But many voters have little impression of key leaders expected to now run the show.
Two-thirds (66%) of American voters are confident that ballots were properly counted on Election Day and the proper candidates were declared the winners.
The latest Rasmussen Reports survey finds McCain leading former Vice President Al Gore (D) 48% to 41%. Earlier surveys released show him leading Senator Hillary Clinton (D) and Barack Obama (D).
While Americans are less hopeful about our nation’s future than they were in 2004, 61% continue to believe that American society is generally fair and decent.
A Rasmussen Reports survey of 1,000 Likely Voters found that 42% disagree and say that our best days have already come and gone.
Forty-four percent (44%) of Americans say that Robert Gates should be confirmed as Secretary of Defense by the United States Senate. A Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of 1,000 adults found that 16% disagree while 40% are not sure at this time.
Twenty-eight percent (28%) of America’s voters want U.S. troops brought home from Iraq immediately. Another 26% want a firm timetable established for the military forces to come home within a year.
There are many reasons that Republicans lost control of Congress last week. On one level, people just didn’t think Congress was doing its job very well. However, it is also clear that the GOP lost its edge on an issue that Ronald Reagan once claimed solely for the Republicans--taxes.
As Election 2006 was unfolding, just 15% of Americans rated the performance of Congress as good or excellent. A Rasmussen Reports survey of 1,000 Likely voters found that 33% gave Congressional performance a “fair” rating while 50% said poor.
In the immediate aftermath of his nomination to replace Donald Rumsfeld, Robert Gates is viewed favorably by 41% of Americans and unfavorably by 27%.
John McCain (R) would defeat Barack Obama (D) 47% to 39% in a 2008 Presidential Election match-up. Rudy Giuliani (R) would defeat the rising Democratic star by a similar margin, 48% to 39%.
Senator John McCain (R) would defeat Senator Hillary Clinton (D) 48% to 43% in the 2008 Presidential Election if it were held at this time.
Following Election 2006, the nation can look forward to our first female Speaker of the House. Another woman, Senator Hillary Clinton, is the initial frontrunner for the 2008 Democratic Presidential nomination.
Democrats carried the day in Election 2006, and the 2008 campaign has already begun. Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani leads the GOP field and is supported by 24%. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is in second with 18% support.
Both the incoming and the outgoing Speaker of the House are viewed favorably by 24% of Americans. Nancy Pelosi (D) is viewed favorably by 24% and unfavorably by 44%.
A majority of voters surveyed (52%) believe it is better to have control of the federal government split between Republicans and Democrats. Thirty percent (30%) disagree, saying that single-party control is a better approach.
Data from 15,000 interviews conducted during October highlighted the magnitude of this perception gap on the economy. Sixty-three percent (63%) of Republicans rate the U.S. economy as good or excellent. Just 21% of Democrats share that optimism.
Missouri’s Senate race remains the closest in the nation. The latest Rasmussen Reports election survey shows incumbent Jim Talent (R) “leading” challenger Claire McCaskill (D) by a single point, 49% to 48%.
In the most recent Rasmussen Hillary Meter survey, former First Lady Hillary Clinton has shifted three points to the left on the ideological continuum to 58 points left of the nation’s political center.
On the morning before Election Day, the Rasmussen Reports Senate Balance of Power summary rates 48 seats as Democrat or Leans Democrat, 48 seats as Republican or Leans Republican, and four Toss-Ups that will determine control of the Senate.
