Polls

JFK, Reagan, Clinton most popular recent ex-presidents

| Dustin Ingalls

Header-poll-results
Raleigh, N.C. –
There is no question who the most beloved president of the last half century is: John F. Kennedy.  74% of American voters have a favorable opinion of Kennedy, and only 15% an unfavorable one.  Depending on how one looks at it, the next most popular is either Bill Clinton or Ronald Reagan, according to PPP’s latest national survey.  More (62%) have a positive view of Clinton than Reagan (60%), but also fewer dislike the Gipper (30%) than Bubba (34%). ExPresGraph

Kennedy accomplishes something only one other president PPP tested can: popularity across the aisle, and enormous popularity.  Republicans see Kennedy well by a 59-25 margin.  Except for Gerald Ford’s 39-31 with Democrats, all the others are seen negatively, with favorability ratings between 9% and 35% with the opposite party.

Both Kennedy and Reagan have 90% favorability ratings within their respective parties, though, with either 6% or 7% unfavorable.  Clinton has an 87-9 mark with Democrats, and George H.W. Bush an 80-14 with the GOP.  No one else comes close.

By far the least liked is Richard Nixon, at 19-62.  Only two others have net-negative ratings: Lyndon B. Johnson (36-39) and George W. Bush, who is seen about as well as the current president, at 41-51.  Bush and Nixon are the most hated across the aisle of any of these nine presidents, with respective 13-79 and 9-72 ratings with Democrats.

Bush’s father is decently well-liked, at 53-35, as is Nixon’s successor, Gerald Ford (45-26).  Jimmy Carter barely breaks even (45-43).

Independents love JFK far more than any of the others.  His 70-16 bests Reagan’s 62-28, Ford’s 49-24, Clinton’s 59-37, Bush 41’s 55-33, Carter’s 43-45, LBJ’s 33-40, Bush 43’s 39-54, and Nixon’s 22-64.

PPP surveyed 665 American voters from September 8th to 11th. The margin of error for the entire survey is +/-3.8%. This poll was not paid for or authorized by any campaign or political organization. PPP surveys are conducted through automated telephone interviews. PPP is a Democratic polling company, but polling expert Nate Silver of the New York Times found that its surveys in 2010 actually exhibited a slight bias toward Republican candidates.

Topline results are below.  Full results, including crosstabs, can be found here.

Q1 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of George W. Bush?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 41%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 51%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 7%

Q2 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Bill Clinton?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 62%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 34%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 4%

Q3 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of George H.W. Bush?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 53%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 35%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 12%

Q4 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Ronald Reagan?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 60%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 30%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 10%

Q5 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Jimmy Carter?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 45%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 43%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 12%

Q6 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Gerald Ford?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 45%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 26%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 29%

Q7 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Richard Nixon?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 19%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 62%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 18%

Q8 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Lyndon Johnson?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 36%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 39%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 25%

Q9 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of John F. Kennedy?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 74%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 15%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 11%

Q10 Who did you vote for President in 2008?
John McCain…………………………………………… 42%
Barack Obama………………………………………… 49%
Someone else/Don’t remember …………………. 9%

Q11 Would you describe yourself as very liberal,
somewhat liberal, moderate, somewhat
conservative, or very conservative?
Very liberal ……………………………………………… 12%
Somewhat liberal …………………………………….. 17%
Moderate………………………………………………… 31%
Somewhat conservative……………………………. 24%
Very conservative ……………………………………. 16%

Q12 If you are a woman, press 1. If a man, press 2.
Woman ………………………………………………….. 54%
Man……………………………………………………….. 46%

Q13 If you are a Democrat, press 1. If a Republican,
press 2. If you are an independent or identify
with another party, press 3.
Democrat ……………………………………………….. 41%
Republican……………………………………………… 34%
Independent/Other…………………………………… 25%

Q14 If you are Hispanic, press 1. If white, press 2.
If African-American, press 3. If other, press 4.
Hispanic…………………………………………………. 9%
White …………………………………………………….. 76%
African-American …………………………………….. 11%
Other……………………………………………………… 4%

Q15 If you are 18 to 29 years old, press 1. If 30 to
45, press 2. If 46 to 65, press 3. If you are
older than 65, press 4.
18 to 29………………………………………………….. 15%
30 to 45………………………………………………….. 27%
46 to 65………………………………………………….. 36%
Older than 65………………………………………….. 22%

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