Republican voters are loving their field of 2016 presidential candidates.
According a Pew Research Center study, 57 percent of Republican and right-leaning registered voters have a favorable opinion of the crop of candidates running for their party’s nomination in 2016.
The survey found that the share of Republican voters with a favorable opinion of candidates in anticipation of 2016 has sharply increased from the same figures ahead of the 2012 and 2008 elections by 13 and 7 points, respectively.
The poll focused on six Republican candidates out of the 19 or so that are considering runs for the White House. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker all had stronger positive ratings than they did negatives.
Huckabee led the pack with the strongest favorable rating among conservative Republicans, but Jeb Bush held the top spot in terms of favorability among moderate and liberal Republican voters.
Pew Research also surveyed voters about the candidacy of Hillary Clinton.
While Clinton’s overall favorability rating has decreased by nine points since August 2014, she nonetheless has a 77-percent approval rating amongst registered Democrats and Democrat-leaning voters.
While it was expected that Clinton’s favorability would decline as she moved from her position as a non-political secretary of state to one as a politician seeking the White House, her ratings are lower now than they were in 2007. Her overall favorability has declined by four points since 2007, and she has experienced a dramatic decrease among liberals, women, and Millennials.
The survey was conducted between May 12 and 18 and involved 2,002 adult Americans.
H/T The Hill
