DC
On Tue, Oct 7, 2008 at 12:20 PM, Doug Henwood <dhenwood at panix.com> wrote:
> [Is "good" some sort of Christian code-word? I've noticed that Bush likes
> it too.]
>
> <http://pewresearch.org/pubs/984/palin-biden-debate>
>
> Post-Debate: Palin Still Seen as Unqualified, a Bump for Biden
> October 6, 2008
>
> While last week's vice-presidential debate had a larger audience than any
> other in history, voters' impressions of Sarah Palin have changed little. A
> special re-interview this weekend of voters who had first been polled a week
> ago found that most (55%) continue to have a favorable view of Palin, but
> most (52%) also still believe that she is not qualified to serve as
> president, if it becomes necessary.
>
> In contrast, voters' opinions of Joe Biden have improved since the previous
> Pew survey conducted Sept. 27-29. Biden's favorability rating among
> registered voters recontacted over the weekend climbed from 54% to 63%, and
> the percentage believing he is qualified to serve as president jumped to 77%
> from 69% a week earlier.
>
> Both candidates get high marks for their debate performances, though Biden
> receives substantially better marks overall. Roughly eight-in-ten voters
> (81%) who watched the vice-presidential debate rate Biden's performance as
> excellent or good, compared with 65% offering positive ratings for Palin.
> Biden receives higher marks for his debate performance than Barack Obama did
> in the first presidential debate (72% excellent/good). Palin, too, is viewed
> as doing a better job than did John McCain (65% vs. 59% excellent/good).
>
> The latest survey by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press was
> conducted on landline phones and cell phones Oct. 3-5 among 820 adults,
> including 710 registered voters, who were previously interviewed. It finds
> that congressional passage of the massive financial rescue bill did not
> increase public support for the plan.
>
> Overall, people who were re-interviewed over the weekend are even more
> divided as to whether this is the right thing or the wrong thing for the
> government to be doing (42% right thing vs. 39% wrong thing). In the Sept.
> 27-29 survey, 45% said it was right for the government to invest billions of
> dollars to try to secure financial markets and institutions, while 38% said
> it was the wrong thing to do.
>
> Republicans More Positive about Biden
>
> Overall, 8% of voters nationwide changed their view of Joe Biden from
> unfavorable to favorable over the past week. Biden changed the minds of a
> number of Republicans and independents.
>
> Among Republicans interviewed both before and after the debates, 14%
> changed their view of Biden from unfavorable to favorable, as did 12% of
> independents. By comparison, Biden had little room to gain among Democrats,
> 81% of whom already viewed him favorably before the debates.
>
> Biden's image also improved over the past week among lower-income voters.
> Among those with household incomes under $30,000 annually, 16% changed their
> opinion of Biden from unfavorable to favorable, compared with just 6% of
> those in higher income categories.
>
> Overall, 5% of voters changed their opinion of Sarah Palin from unfavorable
> to favorable over the past week.
>
> Palin did not substantially improve her image in any subgroups of voters.
>
> Many Words Used to Describe Palin
>
> Among those who watched the debate, the word "knowledgeable" was used most
> often to describe Biden's debate performance. "Experienced" and "competent"
> were also frequently used words. Less positive words used to describe Biden
> included "politician" and "old."
>
> Debate viewers used a somewhat different set of words to describe their
> impression of Palin. "Confident" was the most commonly used word followed by
> "honest" and "good." The fourth and fifth most common responses to Palin's
> debate performance were "inexperienced" and "unqualified."
>
> In general, debate viewers used a wider variety of words to describe Palin,
> though in many cases no more than three or four respondents mentioned the
> same word. In Biden's case, more people used the same word, such as the 53
> who said "knowledgeable."
>
> Debate's Modest Impact
>
> There is little evidence that the events of the past week have changed
> minds of many voters about the presidential election. Just 4% of those
> questioned moved from saying there was a chance they might back McCain to
> saying they definitely would not -- largely offset by 2% who moved from
> definite opposition to maybe giving him consideration. A similar mixed
> change in opinions about voting for Obama was evident in the panel back
> survey.
>
>
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