Independent Voters Surveyed on Presidential Campaign Views

For Immediate Release: May 7, 2007
Contact: Sarah Lyons
212-962-1824

Independent Voters Surveyed on Presidential Campaign Views;
Highest Favorability Ranking to Barack Obama;
Giuliani Leads Among Republican Contenders;
Indies Back “Open Primaries”

New York, NY— Results of polling done by the CUIP, an organizing center for independent voters with networks in 35 states, show Barack Obama receiving the highest favorability rating among independent voters. Forty-five percent of independents have a favorable view of Obama, followed by Hillary Clinton at 39% and John Edwards at 38%. Rudy Giuliani is viewed favorably by 28% and John McCain by 24%.
The results echo the latest Rassmussen Report national survey which also found Obama leading among independents receiving 38%, followed by Clinton at 19% and Edwards at 18%. (Additionally, 10% of independents selected “some other candidate,” 9% were not sure, 4% picked Richardson, and Biden received 2%.)
CUIP has so far polled 800 independents from 28 states in an ongoing survey dubbed “Indie2Indie” in which independents volunteer to call voter lists of fellow independents to elicit their views on the presidential campaign. CUIP’s Independent-to-Independent polling began in March and will continue throughout the election season.
“Independent voters are looking to see which candidates are reaching out beyond their own party’s base to acknowledge and include them,” said Jacqueline Salit, the president of CUIP. “Everyone agrees independents will decide the election in 2008. We’re helping to inform and shape their decision-making process.”
Of the independent respondents to CUIP’s poll, 63% are white, 26% are African-American, 6% are Latino or Hispanic, 2% are Asian, 1% are Native American, and 2% identified as “other.”
Forty percent of respondents are between 41-56 years old, 37% are 56 and over, 5% are 18-25 years old and 18% were 26-40 years of age.
While only half of the states currently hold open primaries allowing independents to vote in the either major party primary, 84% of independents surveyed say they would like to see open primaries in all states.
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