Despite having a higher favorability rating than her husband, first lady Michelle Obama is fast becoming a similarly polarizing public figure, with Democrats and Republicans sharply divided over the mother-in-chief.
A new Rasmussen poll finds that 56 percent of likely voters have a favorable view of Obama, with 39 percent recording a “very favorable” view. Her husband has a 47 percent approval rating.
But when the politics of Rasmussen’s sample of 1,000 likely voters are broken out, the view of the first lady becomes Grand Canyon wide. The pollster found that 89 percent of Democrats have a favorable view of Obama, with a whopping 74 percent in the “very favorable” camp. Not so with Republicans. Some 71 percent have an unfavorable opinion of the first lady.
The Democrat-Republican split over Ann Romney isn’t as great. Some 49 percent of Democrats have an unfavorable view of Mitt Romney’s wife, while 73 percent of Republicans have a favorable view of her.
A new Rasmussen poll finds that 56 percent of likely voters have a favorable view of Obama, with 39 percent recording a “very favorable” view. Her husband has a 47 percent approval rating.
But when the politics of Rasmussen’s sample of 1,000 likely voters are broken out, the view of the first lady becomes Grand Canyon wide. The pollster found that 89 percent of Democrats have a favorable view of Obama, with a whopping 74 percent in the “very favorable” camp. Not so with Republicans. Some 71 percent have an unfavorable opinion of the first lady.
The Democrat-Republican split over Ann Romney isn’t as great. Some 49 percent of Democrats have an unfavorable view of Mitt Romney’s wife, while 73 percent of Republicans have a favorable view of her.
Both are being deployed on the campaign trail, in part to help soften the images of their husbands. Michelle Obama is also playing a major role in reaching out to the troops and military families as well as pushing her get healthy agenda, both of which have been wildly popular and endorsed by corporate America.
The results were in a poll that looked at the importance of the wives of presidential candidates. Rasmussen found that 47 percent of likely voters said that the perception of the candidate's wife is at least somewhat important in terms of how they will vote for president, while 50 percent said it was unimportant.
But a larger share of voters said that the wives should receive the same media scrutiny as other campaign officials. Ironically, however, 53 percent said that there is too much coverage of the lives of candidates, with 35 percent giving the media a good grade for providing just the right amount of coverage.
The results were in a poll that looked at the importance of the wives of presidential candidates. Rasmussen found that 47 percent of likely voters said that the perception of the candidate's wife is at least somewhat important in terms of how they will vote for president, while 50 percent said it was unimportant.
But a larger share of voters said that the wives should receive the same media scrutiny as other campaign officials. Ironically, however, 53 percent said that there is too much coverage of the lives of candidates, with 35 percent giving the media a good grade for providing just the right amount of coverage.
