OPINION:
Hillary Clinton has been edging rival Donald Trump in recent polls, but if you add third-party candidates, such as Libertarian Gary Johnson and Green Party candidate Jill Stein, into the mix, Mrs. Clinton’s lead evaporates, a new poll finds.
When voters had the option of choosing the third-party candidates — even though they are not household names to most people — Mrs. Clinton’s lead over Mr. Trump dropped from five percentage points to one, according to a Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll released Monday.
Dislike for both Mr. Trump and Mrs. Clinton is driving an opening for a third-party candidate, the poll finds.
Substantial majorities of voters said Mrs. Clinton’s record of dishonesty and making the wrong decisions on foreign policy are serious concerns. On the flip side, 65 percent of voters feel that Mr. Trump is too volatile and lacks the right temperament for the White House, and 64 percent feel that his statements are offensive and intolerant.
On a ballot with Mr. Johnson and Mrs. Stein, Mrs. Clinton loses 13 percent of her supporters, while Mr. Trump only loses 9 percent, the survey says. The poll also finds independent voters — who are crucial in deciding elections — are more likely to turn to Mr. Johnson than they are Mrs. Clinton. He outpaces her, 23 percent to 13 percent, the poll finds.
Of the “persuadable” voters who haven’t settled on a candidate yet, 28 percent lean toward Mr. Trump and 25 percent lean toward Mrs. Clinton. After a month of negative headlines for Mr. Trump, this poll is good news for his campaign. It seems this election is more of a referendum on Mrs. Clinton and her failed policies than it is on him.
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