WH2000: The Candidates

ABC News/Washington Post Poll. July 20-23, 2000. N=1,228 adults nationwide. MoE +/- 3.

"Which presidential candidate, Gore or Bush, do you trust to do a better job on . . . holding taxes down / protecting the Social Security system / improving education and the schools / improving the health care system / handling the national economy / handling the issue of gun control / handling foreign affairs / encouraging high moral standards and values / handling the death penalty issue / protecting people’s privacy on the Internet / handling the federal budget surplus / managing the federal budget / handling crime / protecting the environment / handling the abortion issue / addressing women’s issues / appointing justices to the Supreme Court?"

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White House 2000: Comparing the Candidates
All data are from nationwide surveys of Americans 18 & older.
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Polls listed chronologically.

Newsweek Poll conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates. Latest: Oct. 18-20, 2000. N=1,007 registered voters nationwide. MoE ą 3.
					.
*"Next, please tell me whether or not you think each of the following phrases describes Al Gore* / George W. Bush . . . ."**
		Al Gore		George W. Bush
		Yes	No	Yes	No
		%	%	%	%
	"Is intelligent and well informed"
	10/18-20	82	13	69	25
	10/12-13	78	18	70	25
	10/4-6	81	15	70	24
	9/27-29	78	16	70	22
	9/20-22	76	16	72	19
	9/7-8	77	13	68	25
	8/24-25	81	13	72	22
	8/17-18	82	13	71	23
	8/10-11	80	13	75	17
	8/3-4			75	19
	7/27-28	77	17	73	19
					.
	"Is personally likeable"
	10/18-20	67	26	71	23
	10/12-13	67	26	73	23
	10/4-6	67	27	69	24
	9/27-29	70	23	67	25
	9/20-22	69	21	67	22
	9/7-8	68	22	67	24
	8/24-25	69	23	69	23
	8/17-18	70	23	68	25
	8/10-11	61	29	69	22
					.
	"Has strong leadership qualities"
	10/18-20	65	29	65	29
	10/12-13	60	33	66	28
	10/4-6	62	30	64	28
	9/27-29	61	31	64	27
	9/20-22	60	31	63	26
	9/7-8	60	28	65	26
	8/24-25	58	32	68	23
	8/17-18	60	30	62	27
	8/10-11	53	37	71	20
	8/3-4			72	21
	7/27-28	52	37	67	21
					.
	"Cares about people like you"
	10/18-20	60	31	53	39
	10/12-13	57	34	53	38
	10/4-6	58	33	48	42
	9/27-29	59	33	51	39
	9/20-22	54	34	51	34
	9/7-8	60	27	47	40
	8/24-25	58	30	51	39
	8/17-18	60	30	47	41
	8/10-11	53	35	55	31
	8/3-4			59	32
	7/27-28	55	33	55	34
					.
	"Is honest and ethical"
	10/18-20	52	37	63	27
	10/12-13	54	38	63	27
	10/4-6	52	37	59	27
	9/27-29	54	34	57	31
	9/20-22	54	33	58	28
	9/7-8	61	25	56	29
	8/24-25	59	29	60	26
	8/17-18	64	25	58	29
	8/10-11	52	38	66	22
	8/3-4			71	18
	7/27-28	56	33	64	24
					.
	"Shares your views on most major political issues"
	10/18-20	50	45	50	46
	10/12-13	49	44	51	42
	10/4-6	50	43	48	45
	9/27-29	50	43	49	44
	9/20-22	49	40	50	39
	9/7-8	52	37	46	42
	8/24-25	52	40	48	44
	8/17-18	54	38	47	43
	8/10-11	45	48	51	39
	8/3-4			54	37
	7/27-28	43	46	53	36
					.
	"Says what he believes, not just what people want to hear"
	10/18-20	49	41	58	33
	10/12-13	46	44	58	34
	10/4-6	48	42	55	35
	9/27-29	48	42	51	38
	9/20-22	46	43	53	33
	9/7-8	48	37	50	35
	8/24-25	47	41	51	37
	8/17-18	54	34	49	37
	8/10-11	41	46	58	30

						.
"Regardless of which presidential candidate you now support, please tell me whether you think Al Gore or George W. Bush would do a better job of handling each of the following issues as president. [See below.] Do you think Gore or Bush would do a better job of handling this issue as president?"
		Gore	Bush	Same (vol.)	Neither (vol.)	Not Sure
		%	%	%	%	%
	"Foreign policy"
	10/18-20	50	36	5	2	7
	10/12-13	49	40	4	2	5
	10/4-6	48	37	4	2	9
	8/17-18	43	41	5	2	9
						.
	"Helping seniors pay for prescription drugs"
	10/18-20	50	33	4	4	9
	10/12-13	48	33	5	5	9
	10/4-6	51	31	5	3	10
	9/27-29	50	33	4	3	10
	9/20-22	48	33	5	3	11
	8/3-4	45	40	4	3	8
						.
	"Health care"
	10/18-20	51	35	4	3	7
	10/12-13	48	37	4	4	7
	10/4-6	51	34	5	2	8
	9/27-29	49	34	5	3	9
	9/20-22	49	35	6	2	8
	8/3-4	44	42	3	3	8
						.
	"The economy and jobs"
	10/18-20	50	37	5	2	6
	10/12-13	48	37	6	3	6
	10/4-6	49	35	5	3	8
	9/27-29	48	39	4	2	7
	9/20-22	48	38	5	1	8
	8/3-4	42	43	5	2	8
						.
	"Social Security"
	10/18-20	49	39	3	2	7
	10/12-13	47	39	5	3	6
	10/4-6	47	36	4	4	9
	9/27-29	47	39	3	3	8
	9/20-22	46	36	4	3	11
	8/3-4	40	45	4	2	9
						.
	"Education and vouchers"
	10/18-20	43	43	6	1	7
	10/12-13	44	42	3	3	8
	10/4-6	44	40	6	2	8
	9/27-29	44	42	5	2	7
	9/20-22	47	36	5	2	10
	8/3-4	39	48	3	2	8
						.
	"Abortion"
	10/18-20	45	35	3	4	13
	10/12-13	43	36	4	5	12
	10/4-6	45	34	3	4	14
	8/17-18	48	30	5	6	11
						.
	"Taxes"
	10/18-20	45	42	4	3	6
	10/12-13	43	44	4	3	6
	10/4-6	44	41	3	4	8
	9/27-29	41	44	3	3	9
	9/20-22	40	43	5	3	9
	8/3-4	36	50	2	3	9
						.
	"Upholding moral values"
	10/18-20	39	45	9	2	5
	10/12-13	39	44	9	4	5
	10/4-6	39	43	8	3	7
	8/30-31	44	37	8	4	7
						.
	"National defense"
	10/18-20	40	49	3	2	6
	10/12-13	38	50	5	2	5
	10/4-6	39	49	3	1	8
	9/27-29	32	54	3	2	9
	9/20-22	35	49	4	2	10
	8/3-4	30	55	2	2	11
						.
	"Rising oil prices"
	10/18-20	37	38	3	8	14
	10/12-13	37	41	5	7	10
	10/4-6	37	41	3	5	14
	9/27-29	35	44	4	6	11
						.
"Regardless of which presidential candidate you support, do you think Al Gore or George W. Bush would do a better job of dealing with an international crisis situation, like the one now in Israel and last week's terrorist bombing on a U.S. warship in Yemen?"
		%
	Gore	47
	Bush	39
	Same (vol.)	5
	Neither (vol.)	2
	Don't know	7

*Gallup/CNN/USA Today* Tracking Poll**. Sept. 22-24, 2000. N=718 likely voters nationwide. MoE +/- 4.
				.
"Regardless of which presidential candidate you support, please tell me if you think Al Gore or George W. Bush would better handle the rising price of gasoline and fuel oil."
		%
	Bush	42
	Gore	39	See also: Fuel Prices
	Same (vol.)	3	See also: Fuel Prices
	No opinion	16

Fox News/Opinion Dynamics Poll. Aug. 9-10, 2000. N=900 registered voters nationwide. MoE +/- 3.
						.
"Which candidate do you think would do a better job on the following issues [see below]: George W. Bush or Al Gore?"
		Bush	Gore	Equal (vol.)	Neither (vol.)	Not Sure
		%	%	%	%	%
	Military defense	56	24	4	3	13
	Taxes	45	34	4	4	13
	Family values	43	35	12	2	8
	Education	40	41	7	2	10
	Economy	38	41	6	3	12
	Social Security	37	40	6	3	14
	Health care	33	46	5	3	13

*Gallup/CNN/USA Today* Poll**. Aug. 4-5, 2000. N=1,051 adults nationwide. MoE +/- 3.
							.
"Next, regardless of which presidential candidate you support, please tell me if you think Al Gore or George W. Bush would better handle each of the following issues. . . ."
							.

NBC News Poll conducted by the polling organizations of Peter Hart (D) and Robert Teeter (R). August 3, 2000. N=511 registered voters nationwide. MoE +/- 4.4.
						.
"Now I'd like you to compare Al Gore and George W. Bush on a few qualities that people might look for in a president. For each one, please tell me whether you think that Al Gore or George W. Bush would be better on that item. If you think that both would be equally good or that neither would be good on a particular item, just say so. . . ."
		Gore	Bush	Both Equal	Neither	Depends (vol.)	Not Sure
		%	%	%	%	%	%
	"Being knowledgeable and experienced enough to handle the presidency"
		41	37	16	4	-	2
						.
	"Being compassionate enough to understand average people"
		34	38	16	8	-	4
						.
	"Having the best ideas for the future"
		32	45	11	6	1	5

*NBC News/Wall Street Journal* Poll** conducted by the polling organizations of Peter Hart (D) and Robert Teeter (R). July 27-28, 2000. N=500 registered voters nationwide.
						.
"Now I'd like you to compare Al Gore and George W. Bush on a few qualities that people might look for in a president. For each one, please tell me whether you think that Al Gore or George W. Bush would be better on that item. If you think that both would be equally good or that neither would be good on a particular item, just say so. . . ."
		Gore	Bush	Both Equal	Neither	Depends (vol.)	Not Sure
		%	%	%	%	%	%
	"Being knowledgeable enough to deal with foreign policy"
		38	30	17	7	1	7
						.
	"Being easygoing and likeable"
		30	43	19	5	-	3
						.
	"Being trustworthy enough to do the right thing when making decisions"
		29	38	17	12	1	3
						.
	"Having the strong leadership qualities needed to be president"
		26	46	16	8	1	3

Fox News/Opinion Dynamics Poll. July 12-13, 2000. N=900 registered voters nationwide. MoE +/- 3.
						.
"Of the two leading presidential candidates, Al Gore and George W. Bush, which would you rather have [see below]?"
		Bush	Gore	Neither/ Equal (vol.)	Not Sure
		%	%	%	%
	"Nominate the next Supreme Court justice"
		45	38	6	11
						.
	"In charge of protecting our nuclear secrets"
		48	34	11	7
						.
	"Fighting next to you in your foxhole if you had to defend your life"
		44	33	15	8
						.
	"As a business partner"
		50	32	12	6

*CNN/Time* Poll** conducted by Yankelovich Partners. June 14-15, 2000. N=1,006 registered voters nationwide.
						.
"Which candidate -- George W. Bush or Al Gore -- do you think comes closer to your views on each of the following issues? . . ."
.

Full wording: Defense and military issues. *The role of religion in today's society.

ABC News Poll. June 8-11, 2000. N=1,204 adults nationwide. MoE +/- 3.
						.
"Which candidate, Bush or Gore, do you think [see below]?"
		Gore	Bush	Both (vol.)	Neither (vol.)	No Opinion
		%	%	%	%	%
	"Better understands the problems of people like you"
		44	41	2	9	4
						.
	"Is more likely to exaggerate his accomplishments"
		39	42	9	2	8
						.
	"Is more honest and trustworthy"
		38	41	6	9	5
						.
	"Is more intelligent"	37	34	12	3	14
						.
	"Has a more appealing personality"
		37	51	3	5	3
						.
	"Is a stronger leader"	37	52	2	3	6

*ABC News/Washington* Post Poll**. June 8-11, 2000. N=1,204 adults nationwide. MoE +/- 3.
					.
"Please tell me whether the following statement applies to Bush, or not. [See below.] . . . Please tell me whether the following statement applies to Gore, or not. [See below.]"
		Bush		Gore
		Yes	No	Yes	No
		%	%	%	%
	"He understands the problems of people like you."
		48	47	53	42
					.
	"He is a strong leader."
		65	30	48	45
					.
	"He can get things done."
		66	27	58	35
					.
"Do you think there’s a real difference between Bush and Gore on the issues you care about, or not?"
		%
	Yes	68
	No	25
	No opinion	7
					.
"Do you think there’s a real difference between Bush and Gore in terms of their personal qualities, or not?"
		%
	Yes	66
	No	27
	No opinion	7

Bloomberg News Poll conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates. May 25-June 4, 2000. N=1,208 adults nationwide. MoE +/- 3.
						.
"Now I'd like to ask you about a number of the policies and issues that a president has to deal with and which candidate -- Al Gore or George W. Bush -- you think would do a better job handling these issues as president. [See below.] Do you think Gore or Bush would do a better job handling this issue as president?"
		Gore	Bush	No Differ- ence (vol.)	Neither (vol.)	Don't Know
		%	%	%	%	%
	Education	42	38	4	3	14
	Social Security	41	39	2	4	14
	Foreign policy	40	40	2	3	16
	The economy	39	42	3	3	13
	Taxes	36	45	3	3	13
						.
"Which candidate do you think has the knowledge and experience to be a good president: Gore or Bush?"
		%
	Gore	43
	Bush	37
	Both (vol.)	6
	Neither (vol.)	5
	Don't know	8
						.
"Which candidate do you think has the judgment and character to be a good president: Gore or Bush?"
		%
	Bush	42
	Gore	38
	Both (vol.)	5
	Neither (vol.)	4
	Don't know	10

*CNN/USA Today/Gallup* Poll. May 23-24, 2000. N=1,032 adults nationwide. MoE +/- 3.
				.
"Now we would like to ask you, as far as you know, what each of the two major candidates for president -- George W. Bush and Al Gore -- think about some of these issues. . . . "As far as you know, how would [see below] prefer to spend the federal budget surplus? Would he prefer that more of the surplus be used to cut taxes, that more of the surplus be used to reduce the national debt -- or are you unsure?"
		Al Gore	George W. Bush
		%	%
	Cut taxes	18	50
	Reduce debt	41	16
	Neither/Other (vol.)	5	2
	Unsure	36	32
				.
"As far as you know, which comes closer to [see below] view about the role of the federal government in public education in this country? Do you think he feels the federal government should be more involved in education than it is currently, should keep its involvement about the same, should be less involved in education than it currently is -- or are you unsure?"
		Gore's	Bush's
		%	%
	More involved	56	30
	About the same	17	19
	Less involved	8	27
	Unsure	19	24
				.
"As far as you know, would [see below] favor or oppose making it illegal to conduct a late-term abortion procedure known as partial-birth abortion -- or are you unsure?"
		Gore	Bush
		%	%
	Favor	20	28
	Oppose	28	27
	Unsure	52	45
				.
"As far as you know, would [see below] favor or oppose a law that would allow private citizens to carry concealed handguns -- or are you unsure?"
		Gore	Bush
		%	%
	Favor	7	39
	Oppose	55	20
	Unsure	38	41
				.
"As far as you know, would [see below] favor or oppose a proposal to have the federal government pay for the prescription drugs for people on Medicare -- or are you unsure?"
		Gore	Bush
		%	%
	Favor	58	26
	Oppose	5	21
	Unsure	37	53
				.
"As far as you know, would [see below] favor or oppose a proposal to allow workers to invest a portion of their Social Security taxes in the stock market, or are you unsure?"
		Gore	Bush
		%	%
	Favor	18	44
	Oppose	30	9
	Unsure	52	47

Tarrance Group (R)/Lake Snell Perry & Associates (D) Voter.com/Battleground Survey. March 12-13, 2000. N=1,000 likely voters nationwide.
						.
"Now I would like to read you a list of leadership qualities that some people from this part of the country have said are important. Please listen as I read the list and tell me, for each one, whether you think [rotate] George W. Bush or Al Gore better represents this quality. . . ."
		Bush	Gore	Both (vol.)	Neither (vol.)	Unsure
		%	%	%	%	%
	Strength	48	37	3	3	10
	Trustworthiness	43	40	4	7	7
	Vision	43	40	3	4	10
	Cares about people like you	39	43	3	9	7
	Experience	33	55	4	1	6

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