If it's in the News, it's in our Polls. Public opinion polling since 2003.

Politics

Most Recent Releases

August 30, 2016

Voters Say Media, Not Candidates, Setting Agenda For 2016 Election

A majority of voters believe the media are in the driver’s seat this presidential election season.

August 30, 2016

Would You Buy A Used Car from Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump?

Most voters think both of the major presidential candidates are liars and give them equally low marks as potential used car salesmen.

August 29, 2016

Most Favor America First Foreign Policy, Think Obama Disagrees

Most U.S. voters think U.S. foreign policy should focus on what's best for America but believe President Obama is more interested in what's best for the world.

August 29, 2016

Trump Voters Don’t Like the Feds, Clinton Voters Do

The upcoming president election is shaping up as a referendum on the federal government and its actions. Supporters of Donald Trump really dislike the feds, while voters who support Hillary Clinton think they’re great.

August 26, 2016

Few Voters Count on Feds to Get The Job Done

Confidence in the federal government remains low, and most voters still consider the feds a threat to their constitutional rights.

August 26, 2016

Voters Paint A Grim Racial Picture of America

The White House insists that blacks are better off after President Obama’s eight years in office, but voters strongly disagree. No wonder Republican nominee Donald Trump is reaching out to black voters, saying they have “nothing to lose” by supporting him.

August 25, 2016

Most Still Angry at Feds, Congress

Voter anger at the government, an important driver in this year’s presidential race, remains high. Republicans continue to be far angrier at the government than Democrats and unaffiliated voters are, but all three groups are equally mad at Congress.

August 23, 2016

GOPers, Unaffiliateds Down on TPP More Than Democrats Are

The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) is a mega-trade deal involving the United States and 11 other Pacific Rim countries. President Obama is hoping to get it through Congress before he leaves office because Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton have both vowed to stop it. Do voters care?

August 23, 2016

Americans Criticize Internet's Impact on Journalism, Politics

Americans are more negative than ever about the internet’s impact on journalism and politics.

August 22, 2016

Most Still Oppose End to U.S. Control of Internet

Most voters continue to oppose the U.S. government’s decision to cede its last vestige of control over the internet to an international authority and worry that some countries may try to censor web content. 

August 22, 2016

Most Voters Say No to Further U.S. Nation-Building Efforts

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump says he would put an end to “nation building," a term that in recent years has been used to describe stepped-up efforts to establish democracies in the Middle East by use of the U.S. military and U.S. taxpayer dollars. Few voters believe the government's nation-building efforts have been a success, and most agree with Trump that they should be ended.

August 19, 2016

Most Support Trump’s Call for Immigration Restrictions, Screening Test

Most voters support Donald Trump’s plan for temporarily restricting immigration from countries with a history of terrorism and for testing to screen out newcomers who don’t share America’s values. Most also agree that such a test is likely to reduce the number of terrorists entering the United States.

August 18, 2016

Voters Say It’s Important for Clinton, Trump to Hold Press Conferences

Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton hasn’t had a formal press conference since late last year, largely avoiding media questions for the entire primary season. Republican nominee Donald Trump’s routine press conferences often seem to do him more harm than good. Do voters want presidential candidates to meet the press? 

A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds that 82% of Likely U.S. Voters think it is important for the major presidential candidates to hold regular press conferences to answer questions from reporters, with 48% who say it is Very Important. Just 17% view regular press conferences as unimportant, and that includes only three percent (3%) who feel they are Not At All Important. (To see survey question wording, click here.) 

(Want a free daily e-mail update? If it's in the news, it's in our polls). Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter or Facebook

The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on August 15-16, 2016 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

August 17, 2016

Is Trump to Blame for His Bad Media Coverage?

Most voters still think the media is more interested in controversy than in the issues when it comes to the presidential race, and supporters of Donald Trump strongly believe the coverage of his public comments is a classic example. Most Hillary Clinton supporters say Trump’s just a sloppy speaker. 

August 16, 2016

Most Think Hillary Likely to Have Done Favors At State for Clinton Foundation Donors

Following news reports that federal investigators are taking a deeper look at the charitable foundation established by Bill and Hillary Clinton, voters are even more suspicious that the Democratic presidential nominee traded favors to donors while she was secretary of State. 

(Want a free daily e-mail update? If it's in the news, it's in our polls). Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter or Facebook

The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on August 11 and 14, 2016 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

August 16, 2016

Most Like the NRA But Aren't Moved by Its Endorsement

Most voters share a favorable opinion of the National Rifle Association and say their Second Amendment constitutional right to own a gun is important to their vote in the coming elections. But even among voters who rate the second Amendment highly, the NRA's endorsement of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump isn't critical to how they will vote.

August 15, 2016

Most Still Don’t Trust Clinton or Trump

Democrats trust Hillary Clinton more than Republicans trust Donald Trump, but most unaffiliated voters don’t trust either one of them.

August 15, 2016

Voters Are Much More Eager to Vote This Year

Are the stakes higher this election season? Voters seem to think so.

August 12, 2016

Most Still Question Iran Nuclear Deal

Opponents of the Iran nuclear deal reached last year are accusing the Obama administration of paying a secret ransom to Iran after it was revealed that the United States sent $400 million in cash on the same day four U.S. detainees were released by the Iranian government. The president denies the ransom allegations, saying the payment was related to an older dispute, but most voters continue to express pessimism about the nuclear deal.

August 12, 2016

Even More Voters Now See America As A Divided Nation

Voters don’t share President Obama’s upbeat assessment of the nation and strongly believe the United States is coming apart. Even the majority of his fellow Democrats share that gloomy assessment.