New Survey Finds That 85 Percent of Bernie Sanders Supporters Now Plan to Vote for Hillary Clinton
The survey, conducted by the Pew Research Center and released last week, also shows that 9 percent of Sanders supporters intend to vote for Donald Trump.
A Bernie Sanders lawn sign altered to support Hillary Clinton. (Flickr / CC 2.0)
When Bernie Sanders endorsed Hillary Clinton for president Tuesday, a seemingly vast group of Sanders supporters took to social media to express their negative feelings about Clinton. But, despite this wave of rejection by the “Bernie or Bust” movement, a survey finds that a whopping 85 percent of Sanders supporters are now planning to vote for Clinton.
The survey, conducted by the Pew Research Center and released last week (prior to Sanders’ endorsement), found:
Support for Clinton is slightly higher among Democrats and Democratic leaners who backed Sanders in the primary contests: 85% say they plan to vote for Clinton in the general election, compared with 9% who say they will vote for Trump and 6% who volunteer that they will vote for another candidate or don’t know.
The survey also found that young voters, while “highly engaged,” are particularly unhappy with the choices for president. It also confirmed the ample evidence of discord within the Republican Party: 54 percent of Republicans polled said that “disagreements in the party will keep many Republicans from supporting” Donald Trump. In addition, the survey found that 44 percent of voters believe that Trump would “change things for the worse.”
The complete report includes very little mention of third-party candidates like Jill Stein and Gary Johnson.
Mona Chalabi of The Guardian has pointed out potential flaws in the study, writing: “The fact that individuals were asked to state their preferences to a stranger over the phone might have meant that some were reluctant to disclose their intentions openly (in particular, former Sanders [supporters] who plan on switching to Trump).”
Since the survey was conducted before Sanders’ endorsement of Clinton, we don’t know whether the findings would alter the picture. However, the results will probably bolster the hopes of Democratic leaders that Sanders’ supporters will join in the fight against Donald Trump.
—Posted by Emma Niles
WAIT BEFORE YOU GO...This year, the ground feels uncertain — facts are buried and those in power are working to keep them hidden. Now more than ever, independent journalism must go beneath the surface.
At Truthdig, we don’t just report what's happening — we investigate how and why. We follow the threads others leave behind and uncover the forces shaping our future.
Your tax-deductible donation fuels journalism that asks harder questions and digs where others won’t.
Don’t settle for surface-level coverage.
Unearth what matters. Help dig deeper.
Donate now.
In their eagerness to nominate anyone but Bernie Sanders, Democrats are falling into the same trap as Republicans did in 2016.
The impeachment defense team reserves bulk of its case for Monday, focusing just two hours on what they call "politically motivated" effort.
For the first time, the Iowa Democratic Party will report three sets of results from the party's presidential caucuses.
When he won, many American liberals said Democrats needed their own version of the French leader. They should be careful what they wish for.
It begins a marathon two-day session to consider the historic charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress against President Trump.
Now that Bloomberg has officially entered the race, it’s time to take a closer look at how the Democratic National Committee helps shape the race.
You need to be a supporter to comment.
There are currently no responses to this article.
Be the first to respond.