A new Rasmussen poll has Sarah Palin viewed favorably by 58 percent of likely voter respondents, compared with the 57 percent favorables that both John McCain and Barack Obama enjoy. Yes, that’s a statistical tie but it’s pretty impressive considering that 67 percent of the country had never heard of her a week ago.
Not surprisingly, there’s a strong partisan breakdown, with 89 percent of Republicans, 33 percent of Democrats, and 59 percent of unaffiliated respondents viewing her favorably.
More interesting — although partly explained by party — is that she’s much more popular with men (65 percent favorable) than with women (52 percent). A separate Rasmussen survey released Wednesday found that men prefer Palin to Hillary Clinton 49 percent to 45 while women prefer Clinton to Palin 57 percent to 35. Go figure. Maybe Will Wilkinson is on to something with his “Paglian chtonoic sexual power” analysis.
McCain has benefitted from a “Palin bounce,” getting a jump of 12 percent (from 42 to 53) amoung Republicans and 11 percent (54 to 65) among independents in the week since making the announcment.
