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The Potential Impact of Iraq on the Election
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| Contributor | User 13 |
| Last Edited | User 13 Mar 19, 2004 05:10pm |
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| Category | Poll |
| News Date | Friday, March 19, 2004 06:00:00 AM UTC0:0 |
| Description | Although a majority of Americans continue to support the war in Iraq, U.S. military involvement in that country is not the highest priority for them when they are asked about the issues they will take into account on Election Day.
Still, former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean's meteoric rise to the top of the Democratic polls late last year showed the potential power the Iraq war issue has to activate the Democratic base. A Gallup analysis confirms that many Democrats are angry at George W. Bush's actions in Iraq and say that the war will be important in deciding their votes this fall. This focus on the war will benefit Democratic nominee John Kerry's ability to activate his base voters, but the usefulness of the war issue in his quest to win over more moderate swing voters may not be as great.
Iraq War as an Election Priority
Two broad conclusions can be drawn based on an analysis of American public opinion on the situation in Iraq:
* The Iraq war at this point in time is not the most important issue Americans indicate they will take into account in voting this year.
* The majority of Americans (albeit a relatively slim majority) still support the basic concept of the war and believe military intervention was the right thing to do.
The Iraq war is not the most important issue Americans indicate they will take into account in voting this year.
A CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll conducted in February presented Americans with a list of issues, and asked how important the candidates' positions on each would be in influencing their votes for president. While 80% said that the situation in Iraq would be extremely or very important, that was slightly below the 86% who rated a candidate's position on education and the economy as important, 85% on terrorism, and 82% on healthcare. A Newsweek poll, conducted Feb. 19-20, found essentially the same order of importance.
The Iraq situation is particularly less likely to come up spontaneously when the public is |
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