Jeb Bush and Donald Trump have gained substantial footing in the Republican field of presidential candidates after their respective campaign announcements.
A Fox News poll released Wednesday demonstrates that the former Florida governor is the favored candidate among likely Republican primary voters, while the business mogul follows in second.
Specifically, 15 percent of conservative voters would select Bush as their desired GOP nominee, while 11 percent would vote for Trump. Dr. Ben Carson comes in third with 10 percent, while Sen. Rand Paul (Kent.), Gov. Scott Walker (Wisc.) and Sen. Marco Rubio (Fla.) rank not far behind.
Unfortunately for Trump, he is widely viewed as an unserious candidate for the White House; 77 percent of all voters polled labeled him a “side show.”
Among likely Democratic primary voters, Hillary Clinton expectedly remains the favorite, snatching 61 percent of the vote. Fifteen percent of liberals would cast their ballots for Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders (Vt.) if the primary were held today.
The two remaining officially-announced Democratic candidates — former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley and former Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee — each win only one percent or less.
Younger Democratic voters are actually least enthusiastic about Clinton, with 54 percent of voters under the age of 45 naming the former secretary of state as their choice, compared with 65 percent of those over 45. Nineteen percent of those under 45 would vote for Sanders.
The poll also shows Clinton besting nearly all of her Republican competitors in hypothetical general election match ups. However, she falls short when up against Bush, with whom she ties with 43 percent. Rubio also comes close to Clinton, winning 44 percent to her 45 percent.
Nevertheless, Clinton still faces a very real struggle to appear honest in the eyes of American voters. While 45 percent of adults believe the Democratic favorite to be trustworthy, a solid 52 percent disagree.
Part of this distrust in Clinton evidently comes from Americans’ inability to buy into her commitment to help the middle class. In fact, 51 percent of those polled dismissed Clinton’s alleged fight for the middle class as a mere campaign ploy, while only 44 percent believe she is authentic in her crusade for the average American.
The poll was conducted between June 21 and 23 and involved 1,005 registered voters.
