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White House 2000: Post-Election Polls
The Long Count See also: Post-election polls from November | Election 2000 HQ

Polls listed chronologically.

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The Harris Poll. Dec. 14-21, 2000. N=1,025 adults nationwide. MoE ± 3 (total sample).

.
ALL Bush
Voters		 Gore
Voters
% % %
"If everyone who tried to vote in Florida had their votes counted for the candidate who they thought they were voting for -- with no misleading ballots and infallible voting machines -- who do you think would have won the election, George W. Bush or Al Gore?"
Bush 40 76 5
Gore 49 11 89
Not sure/Refused 11 12 6

.
"Do you feel that the whole process of deciding who won in Florida -- including the re-counts, or lack of re-counts, and the decisions made by the Secretary of State, the legislators, and the courts -- has been generally fair or unfair?"
Fair 46 77 17
Unfair 48 16 80
Not sure/Refused 7 7 3

.
"Thinking of the decisions made by the courts concerning the Florida election, do you believe that the decisions made by individual judges in Florida mainly reflect the political views of the judges or mainly reflect their impartial legal judgments?"
Political views 48
Impartial legal judgments 41
Not sure/Refused 11

.
"Thinking of the decisions made by the courts concerning the Florida election, do you believe that the decisions made by individual judges in the Supreme Court mainly reflect the political views of the judges or mainly reflect their impartial legal judgments?"
Political views 41
Impartial legal judgments 48
Not sure/Refused 10

.
"Do you agree or disagree with each of the following statements? At the end of the day, in spite of all the problems casting and counting the votes, the system worked."
Agree 50 80 24
Disagree 46 18 72
Not sure/Refused 4 2 4

.
"Do you agree or disagree with each of the following statements? We clearly have a major problem in the way votes are cast and counted and this needs to be fixed."
Agree 86
Disagree 12
Not sure/Refused 2

 

CBS News Poll. Dec. 14-16, 2000. N=1,048 adults nationwide. MoE ± 3 (total sample).

.
ALL Gore
Voters		 Bush
Voters
% % %
"In general, are you satisfied or dissatisfied with the outcome of the election?"
Satisfied 50 9 93
Dissatisfied 45 89 6
Don't know 5 2 1

.
"Would you say George W. Bush legitimately won the election, or not?"
Legitimately won 53 11 92
Did not 40 81 3
Don't know 7 8 5

.
"How much confidence do you yourself have in the United States Supreme Court: a great deal, quite a lot, some, or very little?"
A great deal 24 13 43
Quite a lot 22 19 31
Some 33 36 22
Very little 18 30 4
Don't know 3 2 0

.
"As you may know, on Tuesday the United States Supreme Court ruled in George W. Bush’s favor, and stopped the manual recounting of votes in Florida that had been ordered by the Florida Supreme Court. Do you approve or disapprove of the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling that stopped the manual recount?"
Approve 54 16 95
Disapprove 42 80 4
Don't know 2 4 1

.
"Do you think the Supreme Court’s decision was based more on partisan politics, or more on an objective interpretation of the law?"
Partisan politics 37 65 10
Objective interpretation 54 29 84
Both (vol.) 1 1 2
Neither (vol.) 1 0 1
Don't know 7 5 3

.
"As of now, which candidate has received more votes in the whole country and is leading in the popular vote: George W. Bush or Al Gore?"
Bush 19 8 21
Gore 71 90 69
Don't know 10 2 11

.
"Regardless of what the current vote total is , who do you think more Florida voters INTENDED to vote for: Al Gore or George W. Bush?"
Gore 46 83 13
Bush 34 7 59
Don't know 20 10 28

.
"In a written opinion in the U.S. Supreme Court case that ended the election, one of the Supreme Court justices wrote: ‘We may never know with complete certainty the identity of the winner of this year’s presidential election.’ Do you agree or disagree with the justice’s statement?"
Agree 67 89 48
Disagree 30 11 51
Don't know 3 0 1

 

Newsweek Poll conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates. Dec. 14-15, 2000. N=1,001 adults nationwide. MoE ± 4 for the total sample, ± 5 for Bush supporters and for Gore supporters.

.
ALL Bush
Sup-
porters		 Gore
Sup-
porters
% % %
"This week, by margin of 5 to 4, the United States Supreme Court reversed the Florida courts' decision and stopped hand recounts of presidential ballots in Florida. All in all, do you think the Supreme Court's decision to stop hand recounts in Florida was fair or unfair?"
Fair 51 88 19
Unfair 44 9 78
Don't know 5 3 3

.
"What role, if any, do you think politics or partisanship played in the Supreme Court justices' decision? Do you think politics or partisanship played a major role in their decision, somewhat of a role, or no role at all?"
Major role 33 13 52
Somewhat of a role 32 35 29
No role at all 29 45 14
Don't know 6 7 5

.
"What role, if any, do you think politics or partisanship played in decisions by THE FLORIDA STATE COURTS in this election dispute? Do you think politics or partisanship played a major role in the state courts' decisions, somewhat of a role, or no role at all?"
Major role 45 38 54
Somewhat of a role 36 38 32
No role at all 14 19 10
Don't know 5 5 4

.
"Thinking more broadly about the role that politics or partisanship plays in court decisions around this country, IN GENERAL, do you think it plays a major role, somewhat of a role, or no role at all?"
Major role 35 24 46
Somewhat of a role 47 51 42
No role at all 13 19 8
Don't know 5 6 4

.
"Has this week's Supreme Court's decision made you more likely to suspect that U.S. SUPREME COURT JUSTICES have a partisan bias?"
Yes 46 19 72
No 48 76 22
Don't know 6 5 6

.
"Has this week's Supreme Court's decision made you more likely to suspect that JUDGES IN GENERAL have a partisan bias?"
Yes 46 25 65
No 50 71 31
Don't know 4 4 4

.
"Do you think that Gore's lawyers could have made a stronger case than they did before the Supreme Court for why hand recounts in Florida should go forward OR that Gore's lawyers did about as well as could be expected under the circumstances?"
Could have made stronger case 18 9 27
Did about as well as could be expected 76 86 67
Don't know 6 5 6

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"Thinking more broadly about the Gore team's legal efforts in the Florida dispute: Do you think they made a serious mistake in not seeking a statewide hand recount sooner -- OR that this didn't have much effect on their chances of success in the courts?"
Made a serious mistake 45 34 57
This didn't have much effect 47 59 36
Don't know 8 7 7

.
"Do you think the Gore team made a serious mistake in conceding that December 12th was a hard deadline for resolving the Florida election dispute -- OR that this didn't have much effect on their chances of success in the courts?"
Made a serious mistake 27 18 38
This didn't have much effect 64 73 53
Don't know 9 9 9

.
"Suppose that, in the near future, a hand recount of disputed Florida ballots by the news media finds that Al Gore actually won the state's popular vote. Do you think this would SERIOUSLY hurt George W. Bush's ability to be an effective national leader, or not?"
Would seriously hurt 37
Would not 58
Don't know 5

.
"Will you consider Bush to be a legitimate president, or not?"
Yes, legitimate 68 97 40
No, not legitimate 29 2 56
Don't know 3 1 4

 

 

ABC News/Washington Post Poll. Latest: Dec. 14, 2000. N=603 adults nationwide. MoE ± 4. Field work by TNS Intersearch.

.
"As you may know, the United States Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected a recount in the presidential election in Florida and said it was too late for a new recount. The ruling means George W. Bush wins the election and the presidency. Al Gore conceded on Wednesday night. Do you approve or disapprove of Gore's decision to concede the presidential race to Bush?"
%
Approve 73
Disapprove 26
No opinion 2

.
"From what you've heard or read about it, do you approve or disapprove of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision rejecting the recount in Florida?"
%
Approve 50
Disapprove 47
No opinion 3

.
"As a result of this ruling, do you have a higher opinion of the U.S. Supreme Court, a lower opinion, or hasn't your opinion of the U.S. Supreme Court changed?"
%
Higher opinion 10
Lower opinion 29
No change 59
No opinion 2

.
"Do you think the majority in the U.S. Supreme Court that ruled in Bush's favor did so mainly on the law and evidence in the case, or mainly because it wanted to help Bush become president?"
%
Mainly on law and evidence 60
Mainly to help Bush 35
No opinion 6

.
"What about the minority in the U.S. Supreme Court that ruled in Gore's favor? Do you think it did so mainly on the law and evidence in the case, or mainly because it wanted to help Gore become president?"
%
Mainly on law and evidence 61
Mainly to help Gore 29
No opinion 10

.
"Do you think this situation reveals serious problems in this country's system of electing the president, or do you think it's just the kind of thing that can happen in a very close election?"
12/14 12/10 12/3 11/12
% % % %
Serious problems in system 55 49 43 32
Kind of thing that can happen 44 50 54 65
No opinion 2 2 3 3

.
"Which comes closest to describing the way you feel about the outcome of this election: enthusiastic; satisfied but not enthusiastic; dissatisfied but not angry, or angry?"
%
Enthusiastic 14
Satisfied but not enthusiastic 36
Dissatisfied but not angry 37
Angry 12
No opinion 1

.
"Who did you personally want to become the next president: [rotate] Al Gore or George W. Bush?"
%
Gore 46
Bush 41
Neither (vol.) 9
Other (vol.) 3
No opinion 1

 

Reuters/NBC News/Zogby survey. Dec. 13, 2000. N=521 likely voters nationwide who voted Nov. 7, 2000. MoE ± 4.5.

.
"Do you believe the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled in the best interests of the nation, or do you believe the ruling reveals the personal political interests of the justices?"
%
Best interests of nation 48
Personal political interests 43
Not sure 9

.
"Do you feel that the Supreme Court has maintained an objective balance or has it become too political?"
%
Objective balance 43
Too political 48
Not sure 9

.
"Do you have confidence in the U.S. election system, or have the events of the past month seriously shaken your confidence?"
%
Have confidence 48
Confidence shaken 48
Not sure 3

.
"Do you strongly agree, somewhat agree, somewhat disagree or strongly disagree that all the votes cast in Florida were fairly counted?"
%
Strongly agree 27
Somewhat agree 14
Somewhat disagree 14
Strongly disagree 44
Not sure 1

.
"In your opinion, do you strongly agree, somewhat agree, somewhat disagree or strongly disagree that President-elect Bush will be able to govern effectively?"
%
Strongly agree 36
Somewhat agree 26
Somewhat disagree 13
Strongly disagree 19
Not sure 5

.
"If you define legitimacy as the will of the people, do you consider a George W. Bush presidency legitimate or not legitimate?"
%
Legitimate 59
Not legitimate 37
Not sure 5

.
"Do you strongly agree, somewhat agree, somewhat disagree or strongly disagree that George W. Bush will be a strong and capable president?"
%
Strongly agree 38
Somewhat agree 20
Somewhat disagree 18
Strongly disagree 18
Not sure 6

.
"Do you have confidence or no confidence in Bush to look after the foreign and security interests of the United States and be able to handle foreign crises?"
%
Confidence 66
No confidence 30
Not sure 5

.
"Do you have confidence or no confidence in Bush to tackle the economic challenges facing the nation and preserve the prosperity?"
%
Confidence 57
No confidence 36
Not sure 7

.
"Given that the results are so close, please tell me which one of these two statements, A or B, comes closer to your point of view. Statement A: The country will be able to unite behind George W. Bush, who will be able to accomplish a lot in the next four years. Statement B: The country will remain divided, and it will be hard for George W. Bush to accomplish a lot over the next four years."
%
A. The country will be able to unite 46
B. The country will remain divided 50
Not sure 4

 

CNN/USA Today/Gallup Poll. Dec. 13, 2000. N=633 adults nationwide (MoE ± 4), including 302 who said they would vote for Gore if the election were today (MoE ± 6), and 278 who said they would vote for Bush if the election were today (MoE ± 6).

.
ALL Gore
"Voters"		 Bush
"Voters"
% % %
"As you may know, the U.S. Supreme Court reached a decision last night which effectively ended the vote recount in Florida, meaning that George W. Bush will be the next president. Do you agree or disagree with the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision?"
Agree 52 13 93
Disagree 42 81 4
No opinion 6 6 3

.
"Do you think the U.S. Supreme Court was fair or unfair in deciding this case?"
Fair 54 17 94
Unfair 38 74 4
Depends (vol.) 1 2 -
No opinion 7 8 2

.
"Do you think the Justices of the U.S. Supreme Court who voted to end the recount in Florida did so [rotate] mostly based on the legal merits of the case OR mostly based on their own desire to have Bush as the next president?"
Merits of the case 54 22 87
Desire to have Bush 35 65 6
Both/Neither (vol.) 3 3 2
No opinion 8 10 5

.
"Does this decision make you lose confidence in the U.S. Supreme Court, or does it not have an effect on your view of the Court?"
Lose confidence 30 54 5
Does not have effect 66 39 93
No opinion 4 7 2

.
"Which of the following best describes your feelings about the fact that George W. Bush will be the next president: [rotate] thrilled, pleased, disappointed, or angry?"
Thrilled 15 0 33
Pleased 33 9 63
Disappointed 34 66 1
Angry 11 22 -
No opinion 7 3 3

.
"If George W. Bush is declared the winner and is inaugurated next January, would you accept him as the legitimate president, or not?"
Yes 80 61 99
No 18 36 1
No opinion 2 3 -

.
"Finally, if the election for president were being held today, who would you vote for: [rotate] Al Gore or George W. Bush?"
%
Gore 47
Bush 44
Other (vol.) 5
No opinion 4

 

ABC News/Washington Post Poll. Latest: Dec. 10, 2000. N=605 adults nationwide. MoE ± 4. Field work by TNS Intersearch.

.
"Please tell me whether you approve or disapprove of the way [see below] is handling the election situation."
Approve Disap-
prove		 No
Opinion
% % %
The Bush campaign 50 47 4
The Gore campaign 34 63 3

.
"On Friday, the Florida State Supreme Court ordered a hand recount there of ballots for which voting machines did not register a vote for president. Yesterday, the United States Supreme Court halted the recount and said it will hear the case tomorrow. Do you think [rotate] the hand recount ordered by the Florida State Supreme Court should have been allowed to continue until it was completed, OR do you think the United States Supreme Court was right to stop the recount?"
%
Hand recount should have continued 51
Court was right to stop the recount 48
No opinion 2

.
"After it hears the case tomorrow, do you think the U.S. Supreme Court should or should not allow the hand recount to go forward? Do you feel that way strongly or somewhat?"
%
Allow -- strongly 44
Allow -- somewhat 9
Not allow -- somewhat 4
Not allow -- strongly 38
No opinion 4

.
"How confident are you that the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in this case will be fair to both sides: very confident, somewhat confident, not too confident, or not confident at all?"
%
Very confident 30
Somewhat confident 36
Not too confident 17
Not confident at all 15
No opinion 2

.
Asked of those who did NOT answer "Very confident" above:
"Which side do you think the Supreme Court may treat unfairly?"
%
Bush 18
Gore 43
Both 5
Neither 20
No opinion 14

.
"The state legislature in Florida may get involved in attempting to determine the winner of the election there. Would you approve or disapprove of the Florida state legislature getting involved in this matter?"
12/10 12/3
% %
Approve 33 38
Disapprove 62 56
No opinion 5 6

.
"Would you approve or disapprove of the United States Congress attempting to determine the winner of the election in Florida?"
12/10 12/3
% %
Approve 40 38
Disapprove 54 57
No opinion 6 5

.
"Who do you personally want to become the next president: [rotate] Al Gore or George W. Bush?"
12/10 12/3 11/26 11/16 11/12
% % % % %
Bush 47 46 43 43 45
Gore 39 43 42 44 44
Neither (vol.) 9 10 10 10 6
Other (vol.) 2 - 2 2 1
No opinion 3 1 3 2 4

 

CBS News Poll. Latest: Dec. 9-10, 2000. N=1,114 adults nationwide. MoE ± 3.

.
"Regardless of whom you supported for president, given all that has happened since the election, who would you rather see become president: George W. Bush or Al Gore?"
12/9-10 11/27-28
% %
Bush 51 47
Gore 41 45
Both (vol.) 1 0
Neither (vol.) 4 3
Don't know 3 5

.
"Do you approve or disapprove of the way the Bush campaign is handling the uncertain outcome of the presidential election? ... Do you approve or disapprove of the way the Gore campaign is handling the uncertain outcome of the presidential election?"
Bush Gore
% %
Approve 56 37
Disapprove 36 56
Don't know 8 7

.
"If Al Gore eventually becomes president in January, would you say he legitimately won the election, or not? ... If George W. Bush eventually becomes president in January, would you say he legitimately won the election, or not?"
Gore Bush
% %
Won legitimately 49 64
Did not win legitimately 39 27
Don't know 12 9

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"Based on what you know so far, do you think one of the candidates should concede now or is it too soon for that?" If "should concede": "Who do you think should concede: Al Gore or George W. Bush?"
%
Gore should concede 38
Bush should concede 3
Too soon for that 52
Don't know 7

.

"As you may know, on Friday the Florida Supreme Court ruled that manual recounts of disputed votes must be conducted in Florida. Do you approve or disapprove of the Florida Supreme Court's decision?"
%
Approve 52
Disapprove 44
Don't know 4

.
"The Florida legislature is currently meeting to name a slate of electors pledged to George W. Bush, even though all of the court cases surrounding the election have not yet been resolved. Do you approve or disapprove of the legislature naming its electors before the outcomes of all the lawsuits have been determined?"
%
Approve 35
Disapprove 58
Don't know 7

.
"In order to finally resolve the election in Florida, do you think there should be a manual recount of ALL ballots in Florida that did not register a choice for president in the certified machine counts, or not?"
%
Should be 50
Should not be 47
Don't know 3

 

CNN/USA Today/Gallup Poll. Latest: Dec. 10, 2000. N=735 adults nationwide. MoE ± 4 for the total sample, ± 6 for Gore supporters and for Bush supporters

.
ALL Gore
Sup-
porters		 Bush
Sup-
porters
% % %
"As you may know, on Saturday, the U.S. Supreme Court stopped a manual recount of votes in Florida in the presidential election contest. On Monday, the Court will hold a hearing on this matter. After the U.S. Supreme Court holds its hearing on Monday, what do you think it should do? Should it allow the manual recount of votes to continue in Florida, or not?"
Allow recount to continue 47 89 7
Not allow 49 8 90
No opinion 4 3 3

.
"The U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling could ultimately decide who will be the next president. Which comes closer to your view: [rotate] I would accept it as a legitimate outcome no matter which candidate it favors OR I would not accept it as a legitimate outcome?"
Legitimate 73 65 80
Not legitimate 19 27 12
No opinion 8 8 8

.
"Overall, do you think the Justices on the U.S. Supreme Court are being influenced by their personal political views when deciding this case, or don’t you think so?"
Yes, influenced 51 65 36
Don't think so 42 26 59
No opinion 7 9 5

.
"As you may know, on Friday, the Supreme Court of the state of Florida ordered a manual recount to take place. Do you think the Judges on the Florida Supreme Court were influenced by their personal political views when deciding this case, or don’t you think so?"
Yes, influenced 60 54 71
Don't think so 34 41 25
No opinion 6 5 4

.
"As of today, do you think Al Gore should concede the election, or should he not concede?" If do not think Gore should concede now: "If the U.S. Supreme Court rules against Al Gore, should he concede the election, or should he not concede?"
%
Concede now 53
Concede if Court rules against him 26
Should not concede 16
No opinion 5

.
ALL Gore
Sup-
porters		 Bush
Sup-
porters
% % %
"Would you approve or disapprove of the Florida legislature voting to select Bush’s slate of 25 electors from that state?"
Approve 48 17 76
Disapprove 42 74 15
No opinion 10 9 9

.
"If it comes down to a choice of these four, which of the following would you most trust to make the final decision on the selection of the next president: [rotate] the U.S. Congress, the Florida legislature, the Supreme Court of Florida, or the Supreme Court of the United States?"
U.S. Supreme Court 61 59 64
U.S. Congress 17 18 16
Florida Supreme Court 9 16 4
Florida legislature 7 1 13
Other (vol.) 2 2 1
No opinion 4 4 2

.
"Who would you most prefer to be the next president: [rotate] Al Gore or George W. Bush, or don’t you have a preference?"
12/10 12/2-4 11/26-27 11/19
% % % %
Bush 45 46 42 42
Gore 40 40 40 45
Unsure 13 13 17 12
No opinion 2 1 1 1

 

NBC News/Wall Street Journal Poll conducted by the polling organizations of Peter Hart (D) and Robert Teeter (R). Dec. 10, 2000. N=538 adults nationwide. MoE ± 4.3.

.
"Do you approve or disapprove of the decision made on Saturday by the United States Supreme Court to stop the Florida recount until the Supreme Court can hear the arguments on the legality of the recount?"
%
Approve 53
Disapprove 43
Not sure 4

.
"If the United States Supreme Court's final decision is to NOT allow the recount of unrecorded ballots, would this be acceptable or unacceptable to you?"
%
Acceptable 57
Unacceptable 41
Not sure 2

.
"Do you think that the United States Supreme Court is or is not the proper place to decide who won the presidential election in Florida?"
%
Is the proper place 44
Is not 46
Not sure 10

.
"Do you think that the five-to-four decision reached by the United States Supreme Court to stop the recount is based mostly on the law, or do you think that it is based mostly on politics?"
%
Mostly on the law 34
Mostly on politics 53
Some of both (vol.) 7
Not sure 6

 

Newsweek Poll conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates. Dec. 7-8, 2000. N=1,182 adults nationwide. MoE ± 3 for the total sample, ± 4 for Bush supporters, and ± 5 for Gore supporters.

.
"Now I have some questions about the Florida election dispute. As you may know, the Florida Supreme Court today overturned the lower court's decision and ordered statewide hand recounts of ballots in Miami-Dade and other counties where machines did not pick up any vote for president. Do you agree or disagree with today's decision by the Florida Supreme Court?" Asked 12/8 only (N=600; MoE ± 4).
%
Agree 46
Disagree 47
Don't know 7

.
ALL Bush
Sup-
porters		 Gore
Sup-
porters
% % %
"The outcome of the presidential election remains in doubt, pending court action on the Florida recount. Right now, which ONE of the following do you think is more important: getting matters resolved as soon as possible so we can be sure who our next president is, OR making certain to remove all reasonable doubt that the vote count has been fair and accurate?"
Resolve as soon as possible 45 70 17
Remove all reasonable doubt 51 25 82
Don't know 4 5 1

.
"Do you think what's going on in Florida is ALREADY a crisis for our country, is BECOMING a crisis, is UNLIKELY TO BECOME a crisis?"
Already a crisis 25 28 21
Becoming a crisis 29 32 26
Unlikely to become a crisis 42 36 50
Don't know 4 4 3

.
"We'd like your overall opinion of how the two presidential candidates have personally handled the situation in Florida since Election Day. Do you approve or disapprove of the way [see below] has handled the situation in Florida?"
George W. Bush
Approve 56
Disapprove 38
Don't know 6

.
Al Gore
Approve 42
Disapprove 54
Don't know 4

.
"There are about 10,000 ballots in Miami-Dade County where machine counting did not pick up any vote for president. Do you think it would be fair or unfair if these ballots are never examined by hand for indications of voters' intentions?"
Fair 33 55 10
Unfair 62 38 88
Don't know 5 7 2

.
"Do you think it would be fair or unfair if these Miami-Dade County ballots are examined by hand but NOT those in other parts of the state where machine counts might also have missed votes for president?"
Fair 21 20 21
Unfair 72 74 73
Don't know 7 6 6

.
"If the situation in Florida ends with George W. Bush winning the presidency because hand recounts in several Florida counties that would have put Gore ahead were excluded, do you think this would SERIOUSLY hurt Bush's ability to be an effective national leader, or not?"
Would seriously hurt 36 24 50
Would not 58 71 44
Don't know 6 5 6

.
"If the situation in Florida ends with Al Gore winning the presidency only after a lengthy court battle to include hand recounts in heavily Democratic counties, do you think this would SERIOUSLY hurt Gore's ability to be an effective national leader, or not?"
Would seriously hurt 46 66 25
Would not 49 31 70
Don't know 5 3 5

.
"Suppose that the Florida legislature names a slate of Bush electors on its own, but the Florida courts declare Gore the winner of the state's electoral votes based on additional hand recounts. If the U.S. Congress ends up having to choose between them, do you think Congress should select the Bush electors named by the state legislature or the Gore electors ordered by the state courts?"
Bush electors 36 64 8
Gore electors 38 13 69
Compromise (vol.) 6 3 8
Don't know 20 20 15

 

NBC News Poll conducted by the polling organizations of Peter Hart (D) and Robert Teeter (R). Dec. 4, 2000. N=509 adults nationwide. MoE ± 4.4.

.
"Do you think that George W. Bush has or has not won the presidency?"
%
Has won 63
Has not 25
Not sure 12

.
"At this stage, do you think that there is still some doubt about the winner of the presidential election, or not?"
%
Still some doubt 47
Not any doubt 49
Not sure 4

.
"Which of these two statements comes closer to your point of view?

"Statement A: Now that a Florida State court has denied the Gore campaign's request for a hand count in several Florida counties, Al Gore should concede and stop all court actions.

"Statement B: Al Gore should not concede yet and should continue to await the results from the cases filed in the State's Supreme Court."
%
Gore should concede 59
Gore should not concede 38
Not sure 3

.
"Tonight the Gore campaign has appealed the Florida State court's ruling to deny hand counts in several Florida counties. Do you think that this is a reasonable action, or do you think that the Gore campaign is being a sore loser?"
%
A reasonable action 44
Being a sore loser 48
Not sure 8

.
"Do you think that George W. Bush should start naming people to his Cabinet, or do you think that it is too soon for him to do this?"
%
Should start naming people 42
Too soon to do this 52
Not sure 6

 

ABC News/Washington Post Poll. Dec. 3, 2000. N=757 adults nationwide. MoE ± 3.5. Field work by TNS Intersearch.

.
"Please tell me whether you approve or disapprove of the way [see below] is handling the election situation."
Approve Disap-
prove		 No
Opinion
% % %
The Bush campaign 48 47 6
The Gore campaign 30 65 5

.
"As you may know, the secretary of state in Florida has declared George W. Bush as the winner of the election there. Al Gore says the votes were not counted fairly. Do you think Gore should concede the election and let Bush become president, or should Gore continue to ask the courts to decide whether the vote count in Florida was fair?"
%
Gore should concede 57
Ask courts to decide 40
No opinion 3

.
"How confident are you that the votes in Florida have been counted accurately: very confident, somewhat confident, not too confident, or not confident at all?"
12/3 11/26
% %
Very confident 26 27
Somewhat confident 25 30
Not too confident 16 18
Not confident at all 31 21
No opinion 2 5

.
"Do you think this situation reveals serious problems in this country's system of electing the president, or do you think it's just the kind of thing that can happen in a very close election?"
12/3 11/12
% %
Reveals serious problems 43 32
Just what can happen 54 65
No opinion 3 3

.
"As you may know, Al Gore asked some counties in Florida to hand-count their ballots to recheck the vote totals there. Two counties did not complete their hand-counts. Do you think the hand-counts in these counties should or should not be completed and counted in the final vote total?"
%
Should be counted 57
Should not be counted 41
No opinion 2

.
"Do you think there should or should not be hand-counts of all the votes in Florida?"
%
Should be 46
Should not be 52
No opinion 2

.
"The United States Supreme Court is reviewing the Florida vote count as requested by the Bush campaign. Do you approve or disapprove of the United States Supreme Court being involved in this case?"
%
Approve 60
Disapprove 35
No opinion 5

.
"How confident are you that the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in this case will be fair to both sides: very confident, somewhat confident, not too confident, or not confident at all?"
%
Very confident 32
Somewhat confident 44
Not too confident 14
Not confident at all 8
No opinion 3

.
"What do you think is more important -- for this to end quickly, say within a week; or for both campaigns to have a chance to make their full case in court, even if it takes longer than that?"
12/3 11/26 11/16
% % %
End quickly 55 57 57
Make full case in court 43 40 40
No opinion 3 4 3

.
"If this ends with [see below] winning the presidency, will you consider him to have been legitimately elected as president, or not?"
Gore Bush
% %
Legitimately elected 59 73
Not legitimately elected 38 23
No opinion 3 4

.
"Who do you personally want to become the next president: [rotate] Al Gore or George W. Bush?"
12/3 11/26 11/16 11/12
% % % %
Bush 46 43 43 45
Gore 43 42 44 44
Neither (vol.) 10 10 10 6
Other (vol.) - 2 2 1
No opinion 1 3 2 4

 

Newsweek Poll conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates. Latest: Nov. 29-Dec. 1, 2000. N=1,005 adults nationwide. MoE ± 4 for the total sample, ± 5 for Bush supporters, and ± 6 for Gore supporters.

.
"The outcome of the presidential election remains in doubt, pending court action on the Florida recount. Right now, which ONE of the following do you think is more important: getting matters resolved as soon as possible so we can be sure who our next president is, OR making certain to remove all reasonable doubt that the vote count has been fair and accurate?"
11/29-
12/1		 11/16-17 11/9-11
% % %
Resolve as soon as possible 44 36 25
Remove all reasonable doubt 52 61 72
Don't know 4 3 3

.
"Do you think what’s going on in Florida is ALREADY a crisis for our country, is BECOMING a crisis, or is UNLIKELY TO BECOME a crisis?"
%
Already a crisis 25
Becoming a crisis 30
Unlikely to become a crisis 42
Don't know 3

.
"We’d like your overall opinion of how the two presidential candidates have personally handled the situation in Florida that has continued since Election Day. Do you approve or disapprove of the way George W. Bush has handled the situation in Florida? ... Do you approve or disapprove of the way Al Gore has handled the situation in Florida?"
Bush Gore
% %
Approve 53 40
Disapprove 41 55
Don't know 6 5

.
ALL Bush
Sup-
porters		 Gore
Sup-
porters
% % %
"As of TODAY, do you think that Al Gore should continue to pursue his cases in the courts concerning uncounted and recounted votes in Florida OR that he should concede defeat in the presidential race?"
Should continue to pursue 44 9 82
Should concede defeat 53 91 14
Don't know 3 - 4

.
"Do you think the Florida Supreme Court, which ordered the deadline for hand recounted votes to be extended by one week, has generally been fair or unfair in it decisions related to the Florida recount?"
Fair 53 46 60
Unfair 41 50 34
Don't know 6 4 6

.
"In the Florida case now before it, do you think the United States Supreme Court should rule that the Florida Supreme Court acted properly in extending the deadline for hand recounted votes, or not?"
Properly 54 37 74
Not properly 38 57 19
Don't know 8 6 7

.
"However you think the U.S. Supreme Court should rule on that issue, do you think the Court should get further involved by setting its own guidelines and deadlines for what ballots should now be accepted in Florida?"
Yes, should 48 32 64
No, should not 45 63 28
Don't know 7 5 8

.
"Suppose that the U.S. Supreme Court rules that the Florida Supreme Court ACTED PROPERLY in extending the deadline for hand recounted votes. Do you think Al Gore should continue to pursue his cases in the lower courts concerning uncounted and recounted votes, or that he should concede defeat?"
Should continue to pursue 37 6 69
Should concede defeat 61 93 28
Don't know 2 1 3

.
"What if the U.S. Supreme Court rules the Florida Supreme Court DID NOT ACT PROPERLY in extending the deadline? Do you think Al Gore should continue to pursue his cases in the lower courts concerning uncounted and recounted votes, or that he should concede defeat?"
Should continue to pursue 38 8 71
Should concede defeat 58 90 26
Don't know 4 2 3

.
"There are about 10,000 ballots in Miami-Dade County where machine counting did not pick up any vote for president. Considering the closeness of this election, do you think it would be fair or unfair if these ballots are never examined by hand for indications of voters' intentions?"
Fair 33 55 11
Unfair 62 39 87
Don't know 5 6 2

.
"Which ONE of the following statements comes closer to your own views about how to deal with the so-called 'dimpled chads' -- where voters made an indentation in a box on their punch-card ballot without making a hole through it? Dimpled chads are generally less than a clear indication of voting intentions, and there is too much guesswork involved to count them. OR, Considering the problems with the machines and people’s problems following instructions, dimpled chads should be counted as votes in most cases."
Too much guesswork involved 49 76 24
Should be counted 45 21 70
Don't know 6 3 6

.
"Do you think Bush is as personally involved as he should be in making decisions about the situation in Florida, OR that he is leaving too many of these decisions to former officials from his father's administration and other advisors?"
Involved as he should be 44 71 22
Leaving too much to others 40 18 62
Don't know 16 11 16

.
"Do you approve or disapprove of the Clinton Administration's decision to hold off on giving Bush access to federal funds and office space in Washington to begin a transition to the presidency?"
Approve 60 40 78
Disapprove 32 49 18
Don't know 8 11 4

.
"How confident are you that, after all the legal issues are resolved, the presidential candidate who actually received the most votes in Florida will be awarded the state's electoral voters? Are you . . . ?"
Very confident 26 37 17
Somewhat confident 36 40 34
Not too confident 19 12 27
Not at all confident 14 7 17
Don't know 5 4 5

.
"Suppose that the Florida state legislature names a slate of Bush electors on its own, but the Florida courts declare Gore the winner of the state's electoral votes based on additional hand recounts. If the U.S. Congress ends up having to choose between them, do you think Congress should select the Bush electors named by the state legislature or the Gore electors ordered by the state courts?"
Bush electors 36 68 5
Gore electors 35 8 67
Compromise (vol.) 6 5 8
Don't know 23 19 20

.
"Regardless of how you might have voted in the presidential election, as of TODAY, who would you like to see become our next president . . . ?"
11/29-
12/1		 11/16-17
% %
Bush 44 44
Gore 42 43
Neither 10 5
Don't know 4 8

.
"If Al Gore's court actions fail to overturn the Bush victory in Florida, do you think Gore should run again for president in 2004, or not?"
ALL Bush
Sup-
porters		 Gore
Sup-
porters
% % %
Should 56 39 76
Should not 37 53 18
Don't know 7 8 6

  Post-election polls from November

 

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