Polls

$1 president is #1 in America’s hearts

| Dustin Ingalls

Header-poll-results
Raleigh, N.C. –
America’s first president is still its most popular, according to PPP’s latest national survey released on the heels of Valentine’s and ahead of Presidents’ Day.  89% of voters see George Washington favorably, and only 3% unfavorably, followed in the top ten by Abraham Lincoln (85-7), Thomas Jefferson (74-6), Teddy Roosevelt (66-9), John Adams (55-9), Harry Truman and Dwight Eisenhower (each 62-11), John F. Kennedy (70-21), John Quincy Adams (52-7), and Franklin D. Roosevelt (62-22).  Ronald Reagan is 14th most popular (62-30), Gerald Ford 16th (49-28), Bill Clinton 17th (54-38), George H.W. Bush 19th (51-42), and Jimmy Carter tied for 29th (44-44).

The least popular by far is Richard Nixon (27-59), followed by ten others in negative territory: Lyndon B. Johnson (34-42), Warren Harding (12-19), Millard Fillmore (7-12), Herbert Hoover (25-29), Calvin Coolidge (18-22), Barack Obama (46-49), Chester Arthur (10-13), Martin Van Buren (13-15), James Buchanan (11-13), and George W. Bush (45-46).  54% (James Monroe) to 84% of voters (Franklin Pierce) have no opinion of 20 of the 43 presidents, mostly 19th– and early-20th-century commanders-in-chief.  Only eight have “not sure” figures in the single digits, led by the current head of state.

There are some differences across demographic groups.  The biggest gender gap is for Carter, whom women see 23 points more positively than do men, followed by Nixon, who is viewed 21 points better by men than women.  JFK ties Washington for most popular among Democrats, followed closely by Lincoln, Clinton, the Roosevelts, Jefferson, Obama, Truman, and Carter; Nixon and Reagan are by far their least favorites, followed by the Bushes.  Among Republicans, Reagan is a close second fiddle to Washington, and the Bushes are sixth and seventh.  Obama is far less popular with Republicans than anyone is with Democrats, for a partisan gap of 136 points.  He is followed distantly by Carter, Clinton, and LBJ in the GOP hatred pantheon.  Obama is fourth most popular among black voters, after Lincoln, Washington, and JFK; Clinton, Carter, LBJ, and FDR are sixth through ninth.

PPP surveyed 1,200 American voters from February 9th to 12th. The margin of error for the survey is +/-2.8%. 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 Washington?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 89%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 3%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 8%

Q2 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of John Adams?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 59%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 5%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 36%

Q3 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Thomas Jefferson?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 74%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 6%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 20%

Q4 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of James Madison?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 37%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 7%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 56%

Q5 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of James Monroe?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 39%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 6%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 54%

Q6 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of John Quincy Adams?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 52%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 7%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 41%

Q7 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Andrew Jackson?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 49%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 15%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 37%

Q8 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Martin Van Buren?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 13%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 15%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 72%

Q9 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of William Henry Harrison?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 14%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 8%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 78%

Q10 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of John Tyler?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 10%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 10%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 80%

Q11 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of James K. Polk?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 9%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 9%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 82%

Q12 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Zachary Taylor?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 15%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 9%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 76%

Q13 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Millard Fillmore?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 7%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 12%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 81%

Q14 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Franklin Pierce?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 8%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 8%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 84%

Q15 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of James Buchanan?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 11%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 13%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 76%

Q16 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Abraham Lincoln?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 85%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 7%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 8%

Q17 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Andrew Johnson?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 26%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 18%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 56%

Q18 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Ulysses S. Grant?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 51%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 16%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 33%

Q19 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Rutherford B. Hayes?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 12%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 11%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 77%

Q20 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of James Garfield?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 16%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 13%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 71%

Q21 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Chester Arthur?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 10%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 13%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 77%

Q22 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Grover Cleveland?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 14%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 13%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 73%

Q23 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Benjamin Harrison?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 12%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 9%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 79%

Q24 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of William McKinley?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 17%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 13%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 71%

Q25 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Teddy Roosevelt?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 66%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 9%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 25%

Q26 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of William Howard Taft?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 17%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 15%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 67%

Q27 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Woodrow Wilson?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 34%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 20%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 46%

Q28 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Warren Harding?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 12%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 19%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 69%

Q29 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Calvin Coolidge?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 18%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 22%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 60%

Q30 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Herbert Hoover?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 25%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 29%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 46%

Q31 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Franklin D. Roosevelt?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 62%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 22%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 16%

Q32 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Harry Truman?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 62%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 11%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 27%

Q33 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Dwight Eisenhower?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 62%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 11%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 26%

Q34 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of John F. Kennedy?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 70%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 21%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 9%

Q35 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Lyndon Johnson?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 34%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 42%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 24%

Q36 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Richard Nixon?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 27%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 59%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 13%

Q37 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Gerald Ford?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 49%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 28%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 23%

Q38 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Jimmy Carter?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 44%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 44%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 12%

Q39 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Ronald Reagan?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 62%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 30%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 8%

Q40 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of George H.W. Bush?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 51%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 42%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 8%

Q41 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Bill Clinton?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 54%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 38%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 8%

Q42 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of George W. Bush?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 45%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 46%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 9%

Q43 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Barack Obama?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 46%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 49%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 5%

Q44 Who did you vote for President in 2008?
John McCain…………………………………………… 45%
Barack Obama………………………………………… 47%
Someone else/Don’t remember …………………. 8%

Q45 Would you describe yourself as very liberal,
somewhat liberal, moderate, somewhat
conservative, or very conservative?
Very liberal ……………………………………………… 11%
Somewhat liberal …………………………………….. 20%
Moderate………………………………………………… 28%
Somewhat conservative……………………………. 25%
Very conservative ……………………………………. 17%

Q46 If you are a woman, press 1. If a man, press 2.
Woman ………………………………………………….. 50%
Man……………………………………………………….. 50%

Q47 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 ……………………………………………….. 40%
Republican……………………………………………… 37%
Independent/Other…………………………………… 22%

Q48 If you are Hispanic, press 1. If white, press 2.
If African-American, press 3. If other, press 4.
Hispanic…………………………………………………. 10%
White …………………………………………………….. 72%
African-American …………………………………….. 11%
Other……………………………………………………… 7%

Q49 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………………………………………………….. 38%
Older than 65………………………………………….. 20%

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