Emerson Poll: Americans are split on the Patriots and Brady: Ben Carson emerges, Sanders Slips as Biden is on the move
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, UNITED STATES, September 9, 2015 /EINPresswire.com/ -- After seven months of hearings, lawsuits and media spectacle surrounding the deflate-gate scandal, A national survey suggests Americans remain split on whether the Super Bowl Champion New England Patriots are cheaters; 48% believe they are cheaters and 52% say they’re not. This mirrors the results of a similar survey conducted before the championship game last February, which found 47% identifying the Patriots as cheaters and 54% opposed to that label.
Although his four-game suspension was recently thrown out by the courts, Tom Brady has fared poorly in the court of public opinion. Forty-seven percent (47%) of those polled believe he should be suspended for his alleged role in the deflation of footballs prior to a playoff game, up from 25% who held that opinion in February.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, who has been ridiculed for his handling of deflate-gate, saw a slight uptick in the poll. Those who approve of Goodell were at 22%, compared to his 21% approval in an ECPS poll conducted last September. In the same time period, his disapproval ratings dropped from 45% to 41%.
As revealed in the September 2014 poll, football continues to be America’s favorite sport, ranked first by 37% of respondents, followed by baseball (19%), basketball (9%), soccer (5%), and hockey (4%).
On the political front, the GOP field is firming with 33% of Republican voters favoring Donald Trump for the nomination, up from 31% in late July, before the first debate. However, the big winner is Ben Carson, whose debate bounce propelled him from 5% to 20%. Jeb Bush has seen his numbers drop from 15% to 12% while Marco Rubio is at 8%. The rest of the top nine candidates are: Ted Cruz (6%), Scott Walker (5%), Mike Huckabee (4%), John Kasich (4%), and Carly Fiorina (3%). All other GOP candidates were at 1 percent or lower.
On the Democratic side, Hillary Clinton maintains her strong lead at 48%, but has dropped 6 points from the July 31 survey. Vice-President Joe Biden, flirting with a third presidential run, has enjoyed a 12-point bump in a month, while support for Senator Bernie Sanders has dropped 12 points in the same time frame. The two men are now tied at 21%.
GOP hopeful Ben Carson has seen a double-digit spike in his favorability rating, improving from 32% in July to 46% in the current survey. His unfavorable rating rose just 3 points, from 24% to 27%. Interestingly, Carson is the only candidate who has a net positive image among voters. Clinton’s image has remained consistent holding at 38% favorable to 56% unfavorable. Bush’s favorable rating has improved 10 points, from 25% to 35%, while his unfavorable rating remained at 51%. Trump continues to improve among those surveyed, jumping from 31% to 40% in favorability while his unfavorable numbers have dropped from 56% to 50%.
In head-to-head matchups for the general election, the lead Clinton enjoyed against her top GOP rivals has evaporated. She now trails Bush 47% to 40%, Carson 47% to 41%, and Trump 47% to 43%. Trump beats Sanders 45% to 38%. Mitt Romney, whose name has been floated in political circles for the past few weeks, holds a 47% to 42% lead in a hypothetical matchup with Clinton.
Most encouraging for Clinton is the fact that 29% of voters still expect her to win. Trump supporters are fast becoming believers, with 22% expecting the businessman to win. Only one in 10 (10%) said Bush would win, while 8% gave a nod to Biden and 8% to Carson.
President Obama’s approval dropped over the last 5 weeks from 46% to 41%, while his disapproval ticked up 1 point from 49% to 50%.
Caller ID
The Emerson College Polling Society poll was conducted Saturday, September 5 through Tuesday, September 8. The polling sample for the Democratic and the GOP primary consisted of 392 and 409 likely voters, respectively, with a margin of error of +/-4.9% and a 95% confidence level. The General Election sample consisted of 955 likely voters with a margin of error of +/-3.1% and a 95% confidence level. Data was collected using an Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system. The full methodology and results can be found at www.theeecps.com.
Although his four-game suspension was recently thrown out by the courts, Tom Brady has fared poorly in the court of public opinion. Forty-seven percent (47%) of those polled believe he should be suspended for his alleged role in the deflation of footballs prior to a playoff game, up from 25% who held that opinion in February.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, who has been ridiculed for his handling of deflate-gate, saw a slight uptick in the poll. Those who approve of Goodell were at 22%, compared to his 21% approval in an ECPS poll conducted last September. In the same time period, his disapproval ratings dropped from 45% to 41%.
As revealed in the September 2014 poll, football continues to be America’s favorite sport, ranked first by 37% of respondents, followed by baseball (19%), basketball (9%), soccer (5%), and hockey (4%).
On the political front, the GOP field is firming with 33% of Republican voters favoring Donald Trump for the nomination, up from 31% in late July, before the first debate. However, the big winner is Ben Carson, whose debate bounce propelled him from 5% to 20%. Jeb Bush has seen his numbers drop from 15% to 12% while Marco Rubio is at 8%. The rest of the top nine candidates are: Ted Cruz (6%), Scott Walker (5%), Mike Huckabee (4%), John Kasich (4%), and Carly Fiorina (3%). All other GOP candidates were at 1 percent or lower.
On the Democratic side, Hillary Clinton maintains her strong lead at 48%, but has dropped 6 points from the July 31 survey. Vice-President Joe Biden, flirting with a third presidential run, has enjoyed a 12-point bump in a month, while support for Senator Bernie Sanders has dropped 12 points in the same time frame. The two men are now tied at 21%.
GOP hopeful Ben Carson has seen a double-digit spike in his favorability rating, improving from 32% in July to 46% in the current survey. His unfavorable rating rose just 3 points, from 24% to 27%. Interestingly, Carson is the only candidate who has a net positive image among voters. Clinton’s image has remained consistent holding at 38% favorable to 56% unfavorable. Bush’s favorable rating has improved 10 points, from 25% to 35%, while his unfavorable rating remained at 51%. Trump continues to improve among those surveyed, jumping from 31% to 40% in favorability while his unfavorable numbers have dropped from 56% to 50%.
In head-to-head matchups for the general election, the lead Clinton enjoyed against her top GOP rivals has evaporated. She now trails Bush 47% to 40%, Carson 47% to 41%, and Trump 47% to 43%. Trump beats Sanders 45% to 38%. Mitt Romney, whose name has been floated in political circles for the past few weeks, holds a 47% to 42% lead in a hypothetical matchup with Clinton.
Most encouraging for Clinton is the fact that 29% of voters still expect her to win. Trump supporters are fast becoming believers, with 22% expecting the businessman to win. Only one in 10 (10%) said Bush would win, while 8% gave a nod to Biden and 8% to Carson.
President Obama’s approval dropped over the last 5 weeks from 46% to 41%, while his disapproval ticked up 1 point from 49% to 50%.
Caller ID
The Emerson College Polling Society poll was conducted Saturday, September 5 through Tuesday, September 8. The polling sample for the Democratic and the GOP primary consisted of 392 and 409 likely voters, respectively, with a margin of error of +/-4.9% and a 95% confidence level. The General Election sample consisted of 955 likely voters with a margin of error of +/-3.1% and a 95% confidence level. Data was collected using an Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system. The full methodology and results can be found at www.theeecps.com.
Spencer Kimball
Emerson College
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