More than half of registered voters in the U.S. have unfavorable views of both GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump and Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, with the major party front-runners’ unfavorable ratings the highest at this point in the cycle since at least 1984, according to a new poll.
Fifty-seven percent of voters have an unfavorable view of Mr. Trump, compared to 24 percent who have a favorable opinion, according to a CBS News/New York Times poll released Monday. Meanwhile, 52 percent have an unfavorable view of Mrs. Clinton, compared to 31 percent who reported a favorable view.
Compared to front-runners in previous presidential primaries, these unfavorable ratings are the highest in CBS/NYT polls going back to 1984, when CBS started asking the question.
At this point four years ago, eventual 2012 GOP nominee Mitt Romney had a negative 30 percent/37 percent split, while President Obama had a 41 percent/41 percent split.
And at this point in 2008, Mr. Obama had a 44 percent/28 percent split, Mrs. Clinton had a 39 percent/41 percent split, and eventual GOP nominee John McCain had a 38 percent/31 percent split.
In head-to-head match-ups against other Republicans, Mrs. Clinton fared the best against Mr. Trump, leading by 10 points. She had a 3-point lead against Sen. Ted Cruz and trailed Ohio Gov. John Kasich by 4 points.
Sen. Bernard Sanders of Vermont, Mrs. Clinton’s Democratic rival, actually had a larger lead against Mr. Trump, leading the real estate mogul by 15 points.
Fifty percent said they would be “scared” about what Mr. Trump would do in office, compared to 20 percent who said optimistic, 19 percent who said concerned, and 10 percent who said excited.
Thirty-five percent said they would be “scared” about what Mrs. Clinton would do in office, compared to 31 percent who said optimistic, 21 percent who said concerned, and 11 percent who said excited.
“Optimistic” was the most common sentiment when voters were asked about Mr. Cruz, Mr. Kasich and Mr. Sanders.
Forty-six percent of Americans also reported having a favorable view of the Democratic party, compared to 28 percent who have a favorable opinion of the Republican party — matching a low in CBS/NYT surveys. Meanwhile, 66 percent of Americans reported an unfavorable view of the Republican party — a record high in CBS News polling.
• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.
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