WH2000: Post-Election Polls, November

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White House 2000: Post-Election Polls
The Long Count: November Polls Recount polls from December

Polls listed chronologically.

Subscribers, see also: What Florida thinks of The Long Count

*CBS News/New York Times* Poll**. Nov. 27-28, 2000. N=1,012 adults nationwide. MoE ą 3 (total sample).
						.
"It is possible in our election system for one presidential candidate to receive the most state ELECTORAL votes, while another candidate receives the most POPULAR votes nationwide. In this case, who do you think has a MORE legitimate claim to the presidency: the electoral vote winner or the popular vote winner, or does neither have a legitimate claim?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters	Non- Voters
		%	%	%	%
	Electoral vote winner	40	27	67	28
	Popular vote winner	43	59	21	48
	Neither	10	8	8	12
	Don't know	7	6	4	12
						.
"As of now, which candidate has received more votes nationwide and is leading in the popular vote: George W. Bush, or Al Gore?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters	Non- Voters
		%	%	%	%
	Bush	24	14	26	30
	Gore	64	81	64	47
	Don't know	12	5	10	23
						.
"Do you approve or disapprove of the way the Bush campaign is handling the uncertain outcome of the presidential election?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters	Non- Voters
		%	%	%	%
	Approve	50	26	81	43
	Disapprove	41	66	15	40
	Don't know	9	8	4	17
						.
"Do you approve or disapprove of the way the Gore campaign is handling the uncertain outcome of the presidential election?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters	Non- Voters
		%	%	%	%
	Approve	38	70	7	35
	Disapprove	54	21	91	53
	Don't know	8	9	2	12
						.
"If Al Gore eventually becomes president in January, given all that has happened, do you think he could lead the country effectively, or not?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters	Non- Voters
		%	%	%	%
	Could	60	82	36	60
	Could not	33	14	55	31
	Don't know	7	4	9	9
						.
"If George W. Bush eventually becomes president in January, given all that has happened, do you think he could lead the country effectively, or not?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters	Non- Voters
		%	%	%	%
	Could	65	39	93	64
	Could not	26	52	2	23
	Don't know	9	9	5	13
						.
"If Al Gore eventually becomes president in January, would you say he legitimately won the election, or not?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters	Non- Voters
		%	%	%	%
	Legitimately won	50	78	22	49
	Did not	39	12	70	37
	Don't know	11	10	8	14
						.
"If George W. Bush eventually becomes president in January, would you say he legitimately won the election, or not?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters	Non- Voters
		%	%	%	%
	Legitimately won	65	41	94	59
	Did not	27	50	2	29
	Don't know	8	9	4	12
						.
"Do you think either of the presidential campaigns is placing politics above the good of the country?" If "Yes": "Which campaign is doing that: the Bush campaign or the Gore campaign?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters	Non- Voters
		%	%	%	%
	Yes -- Bush campaign	17	32	4	16
	Yes -- Gore campaign	26	8	54	17
	Yes -- Both equally (vol.)	31	32	24	33
	No, neither	16	17	13	20
	Don't know	10	11	5	14
						.
"When do you think the outcome of the election will finally be resolved: by the end of this week, within the next few weeks, or will it take longer than that?"
		%
	End of this week	13
	Within the next few weeks	39
	Longer than that	39
	Already has (vol.)	1
	Don't know	8
						.
"Once the election is finally settled, do you think we will have gotten a fair and accurate vote count in Florida, or not?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters	Non- Voters
		%	%	%	%
	Yes, fair and accurate	38	27	56	33
	No, not	47	56	32	52
	Don't know	15	17	12	15
						.
"Regardless of what the current vote total is, who do you think more voters in Florida INTENDED to vote for: Al Gore or George W. Bush?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters	Non- Voters
		%	%	%	%
	Gore	40	75	8	37
	Bush	35	11	62	36
	Don't know	25	14	30	27
						.
"Based on what you know so far, do you think one of the candidates should concede now or is it too soon for that?" If "Should concede": "Who do you think should concede: Al Gore or George W. Bush?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters	Non- Voters
		%	%	%	%
	Yes -- Gore should	42	13	83	31
	Yes -- Bush should	3	5	1	4
	No, too soon	48	77	12	54
	Don't know	7	5	4	11
						.
"The Florida Secretary of State Katherine Harris has now certified the results of the election in Florida, and declared George W. Bush the winner. Do you think the results that were certified are a fair and accurate count of how the majority of Florida voters cast their ballots, or not?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters	Non- Voters
		%	%	%	%
	Fair and accurate	47	14	89	43
	Not fair and accurate	47	83	8	48
	Don't know	6	3	3	9
						.
"The United States Supreme Court has agreed to hear an appeal from the Bush campaign regarding the counting of ballots in Florida. Do you think it is a good idea or a bad idea for the U.S. Supreme Court to get involved in the election?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters	Non- Voters
		%	%	%	%
	Good idea	54	61	48	54
	Bad idea	39	34	45	36
	Don't know	7	5	7	10
						.
"George W. Bush said he is confident he will be president so he has begun to select officials for his administration. Do you think he is right in starting to form his administration before the court cases surrounding the election are resolved, or should he wait until the court cases are decided?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters	Non- Voters
		%	%	%	%
	Right to start	50	33	78	41
	Should wait	47	64	20	57
	Don't know	3	3	2	2

NBC News Poll conducted by the polling organizations of Peter Hart (D) and Robert Teeter (R). Nov. 27, 2000. N=490 adults nationwide. MoE ą 4.5.
				.
"Who do you think should be declared the winner of the presidential election in Florida? Do you think George W. Bush should be declared the winner, do you think Al Gore should be declared the winner, or do you think it is too soon to say?"
		%
	Bush	50
	Gore	16
	Too soon to say	31
	Not sure	3
				.
"Do you think that George W. Bush was right to claim victory and set up a transition operation, or do you think that he should have waited until the legal challenges in the courts had been decided?"
		%
	Was right to claim victory	44
	Should have waited	51
	Not sure	5
				.
"Which of these two statements comes closer to your point of view? "Statement A: Now that the vote in Florida has been certified, Al Gore should concede and stop all court actions. "Statement B: Al Gore should not concede yet and should continue to await the results from the cases filed in the courts."
		%
	Gore should concede	49
	Gore should not concede	49
	Not sure	2
				.
"Do you think that the Florida secretary of state's decision to certify George W. Bush as the winner in Florida was based on a fair and unbiased process, or do you think that it was based on an unfair and biased process?"
		%
	Fair and unbiased	49
	Unfair and biased	44
	Some of both (vol.)	4
	Not sure	3
				.
"Regardless of who wins the presidential election and with the results being so close, please tell me which one of these two statements comes closer to your point of view: "Statement A: The country will be able to unite behind the winner, who will go on to accomplish a lot in the next four years. "Statement B: The country will remain divided, and it will be hard for the winner to accomplish a lot over the next four years."
		%
	Will be able to unite	38
	Will remain divided	54
	Not sure	8
				.
"The United States Supreme Court is hearing arguments this Friday on issues related to the Florida recount. As you may know, Supreme Court justices are appointed by the president. Are you confident that the Supreme Court can make a fair and nonpartisan decision, or not?"
			%
	Confident can make a fair and nonpartisan decision		73
	Not confident		19
	Not sure		8

*CNN/USA Today/Gallup Poll*. Latest: Nov. 26-27, 2000. N=881 adults nationwide. MoE ą 4 for the total sample, ą 6 for Gore supporters and for Bush supporters.
					.
"Which comes closer to your view: [rotate] you are willing to wait at least a little while longer for a final resolution to the presidential election situation, OR, the presidential election situation has gone on too long already?"
		ALL	Gore Sup- porters	Bush Sup- porters
		%	%	%
	Willing to wait	37	67	9
	Gone on too long already	62	32	90
	No opinion	1	1	1
					.
"Would you say that you strongly approve, approve, disapprove, or strongly disapprove of the way each of the following has handled the situation surrounding the results of the election for president? . . ."
		ALL	Gore Sup- porters	Bush Sup- porters
		%	%	%
	George W. Bush and his campaign advisors
	Strongly approve	11	1	25
	Approve	43	25	61
	Disapprove	32	52	11
	Strongly disapprove	9	19	1
	No opinion	5	3	2
					.
	Al Gore and his campaign advisors
	Strongly approve	9	20	-
	Approve	33	59	9
	Disapprove	35	17	49
	Strongly disapprove	19	3	40
	No opinion	4	1	2
					.
	The news media
	Strongly approve	5	6	5
	Approve	43	55	30
	Disapprove	35	28	43
	Strongly disapprove	13	9	18
	No opinion	4	2	4
					.
	Florida Secretary of State Katherine Harris
	Strongly approve	12	1	26
	Approve	37	21	53
	Disapprove	27	44	11
	Strongly disapprove	13	25	3
	No opinion	11	9	7
					.
"Which of these statements do you think best describes the situation that has occurred since the election for president? [Rotate] It is a constitutional crisis. It is a major problem for the country, but is not a crisis. It is a minor problem for the country. OR, It is not a problem for the country at all."
		11/26-27	11/19
		%	%
	Constitutional crisis	10	10
	Major problem, not a crisis	50	44
	Minor problem	29	32
	Not a problem at all	9	12
	No opinion	2	2
					.
"As you may know, the Florida secretary of state tonight/last night declared George W. Bush the winner of the presidential election in Florida, with 537 more votes than Al Gore. Several court cases concerning the Florida vote recount, including a hearing before the U.S. Supreme Court, are still under way. As of today, do you think Al Gore should concede the election, or should he not concede?"
		ALL	Gore Sup- porters	Bush Sup- porters
		%	%	%
	Should concede	56	36	81
	Should not concede	38	59	16
	No opinion	6	5	3
					.
"As you may know, Palm Beach County was not able to submit all of its ballots by the 5:00 pm deadline on Sunday, and had to submit a partial count. What do you think the Florida secretary of state should have done: [rotate] give Palm Beach County more time to complete its recount, or stick to the 5:00 pm deadline for all counties?"
		ALL	Gore Sup- porters	Bush Sup- porters
		%	%	%
	Give more time	44	80	8
	Stick to deadline	54	18	91
	No opinion	2	2	1
					.
"Thinking about the media's coverage of the Florida recount, do you think the media have been [rotate] biased in favor of Al Gore or biased in favor of George W. Bush, or has it not been biased toward either candidate?"
		ALL	Gore Sup- porters	Bush Sup- porters
		%	%	%
	Biased in favor of Gore	23	6	45
	Biased in favor of Bush	10	18	4
	Not biased toward either	63	74	48
	No opinion	4	2	3

*ABC News/Washington* Post Poll**. Nov. 26, 2000. N=607 adults nationwide. MoE ą 4. Field work by TNS Intersearch.
			.
"Tonight the Secretary of State in Florida declared George W. Bush as the winner of the election there. Al Gore says the votes were not counted fairly. Do you think Gore should concede the election and let Bush become president, or ask the courts to decide whether the vote count in Florida was fair?"
		%
	Gore should concede	60
	Ask courts to decide	35
	No opinion	6
			.
"Earlier today officials in Palm Beach County asked for an extension until 9 a.m. tomorrow to finish their hand count of the votes there. The Florida secretary of state denied the request and said she would not accept any of the hand count in Palm Beach since it wasn't completed by the deadline of 5 p.m today. Do you think she did the right thing by keeping the 5 p.m. deadline or do you think she should have allowed the extension to 9 a.m. tomorrow?"
		%
	Did the right thing	56
	Should have allowed extension	42
	No opinion	2

CBS News Poll. Nov. 19, 2000. N=822 adults nationwide (MoE ą 3), including 684 registered voters (MoE ą 4).
				.
Asked of registered voters: "Regardless of whom you supported for president, given all that has happened since the election, who would you rather see become president: George W. Bush or Al Gore?"
		%
	Bush	48
	Gore	46
	Neither (vol.)	2
	Don't know	4
				.
"Do you approve or disapprove of the way the Bush campaign is handling the uncertain outcome of the presidential election? ... Do you approve or disapprove of the way the Gore campaign is handling the uncertain outcome of the presidential election?"
		Bush Campaign	Gore Campaign
		%	%
	Approve	45	40
	Disapprove	43	50
	Don't know	12	10
				.
"Do you approve or disapprove of the way Florida Secretary of State Katherine Harris is handling her job overseeing the vote count in Florida?"
		%
	Approve	45
	Disapprove	42
	Don't know	13
				.
"When do you think the outcome of the Florida election will finally be resolved: by the end of this week, within the next few weeks, or will it take longer than that?"
		%
	By the end of this week	25
	Within a few weeks	36
	Longer than that	30
	Don't know	9
				.
"Have you lost patience with the fact that the election hasn't been resolved yet, or are you willing to wait longer for a resolution?"
		%
	Lost patience	45
	Willing to wait	50
	Depends (vol.)	2
	Don't know	3
				.
"Once the election is finally settled, do you think we will have gotten a fair and accurate vote count in Florida, or not?"
		%
	Yes, fair and accurate	41
	Not fair and accurate	43
	Don't know	16
				.
"Regardless of what the current vote total is, who do you think more voters in Florida INTENDED to vote for, Al Gore or George W. Bush?"
		%
	Gore	41
	Bush	41
	Don't know	18
				.
"Do you think the continuing controversy over the election in Florida is a big problem for this country, or do you think it is not really a problem?"
		%
	Big problem	66
	Not really a problem	31
	Don't know	3
				.
"Do you think the results of hand counts taking place in several counties in Florida should be included in the official vote count, or not?"
		%
	Should be included	59
	Should not be included	36
	Don't know	5
				.
"Would you favor or oppose setting a uniform poll closing time on election night, so that all polling places across the country close at the same time?"
		%
	Favor	71
	Oppose	23
	Don't know	6

Newsweek Poll conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates. Latest: Nov. 16-17, 2000. N=1,000 adults nationwide. MoE ą 4 for the total sample, ą 6 for Gore supporters and ą 5 for Bush supporters.
						.
"As you probably know, the outcome of the presidential election depends on whether George W. Bush or Al Gore is awarded the state of Florida. Right now, which ONE of the following do you think is more important? Getting matters resolved as soon as possible so we know who our next president is. Making certain to remove all reasonable doubt that the vote count has been fair and accurate."
		11/16-17	11/9-11
		%	%
	Resolve as soon as possible	36	25
	Remove all reasonable doubt	61	72
	Don't know	3	3
						.
"Do you see the uncertainty about the vote in Florida and the delay in knowing who won the presidency as a sign of weakness in our political system OR as a sign of strength that we are peacefully taking the steps necessary to make sure the right candidate is declared the winner of a very close election?"
		%
	A sign of weakness	37
	A sign of strength	52
	Don't know	11
						.
"In general, do you think counting punch-card votes in Florida by hand is MORE fair and accurate or LESS fair and accurate than counting punch-card votes by machine?"
		ALL	Gore Sup- porters	Bush Sup- porters
		%	%	%
	More fair and accurate	43	67	20
	Less fair and accurate	44	20	72
	No difference (vol.)	5	5	3
	Don't know	8	8	5
						.
"Do you think the legal issues in dispute over the vote count in Florida are better resolved in the state courts, which have generally handled such issues in the past, or in the federal courts, because the outcome of the presidential election depends on what happens in Florida?"
		ALL	Gore Sup- porters	Bush Sup- porters
		%	%	%
	In state courts	40	34	50
	In federal courts	50	58	40
	Don't know	10	8	10
						.
"At what point do you think Bush and Gore should agree to accept the Florida results as final? On Saturday, after the overseas absentee ballots are all counted and combined with the results certified earlier this week -- as ordered by Florida Secretary of State Katherine Harris. Only after the courts have finally decided whether or not counties that want hand recounts can have them considered. They should wait as long as it takes to ensure that all other legal challenges to the vote can be resolved."
			ALL	Gore Sup- porters	Bush Sup- porters
			%	%	%
	After overseas ballots counted		48	24	73
	After courts rule on hand recounts		17	23	12
	Wait as long as it takes		33	51	12
	Don't know		2	2	3
						.
"Al Gore has said he would agree to accept the Florida results as final and drop all legal challenges if a hand recount is permitted in selected counties or across the entire state. Do you think Gore's proposal is reasonable grounds for a compromise solution to get matters resolved, or is just an attempt to make himself look better politically?"
			ALL	Gore Sup- porters	Bush Sup- porters
			%	%	%
	Reasonable grounds for a solution		49	81	15
	Attempt to look better politically		46	15	80
	Don't know		5	4	5
						.
"From what you've seen or heard, do you feel that Katherine Harris, the Republican Secretary of State, has handled the recount process fairly, or has been too partisan?"
		ALL	Gore Sup- porters	Bush Sup- porters
		%	%	%
	Has handled fairly	50	22	80
	Been too partisan	37	65	10
	Don't know	13	13	10
						.
"From what you've seen or heard about the issue of voters in Palm Beach County misinterpreting their so-called 'butterfly ballot' and mistakenly voting for Pat Buchanan instead of Al Gore, what do you think should happen? Should the entire county be asked to vote again, or should the ballot problem there be seen as the kind of honest mistake that occurs in many elections, not serious enough to require a new vote?"
			ALL	Gore Sup- porters	Bush Sup- porters
			%	%	%
	County should vote again		39	66	11
	Not serious enough to require new vote		55	29	83
	Don't know		6	5	6
						.
"Now thinking about the way the two campaigns have used legal action in the dispute over the Florida vote: Do you think [see below] has gone to court more to make sure the vote is fairly counted OR more to try to gain the most advantage for their side in the way the vote is counted?"
		Fairly Counted	Gain Advan- tage	Don't Know
		%	%	%
	The Bush campaign	36	56	8
	The Gore campaign	41	53	6
						.
"Regardless of how you might have voted last week, as of TODAY, who would you like to see become our next president: [rotate] Al Gore or George W. Bush?"
		%
	Bush	44
	Gore	43
	Other/Undecided	13

*ABC News/Washington* Post Poll**. Latest: Nov. 16, 2000. N=610 adults nationwide. MoE ą 4. Field work by TNS Intersearch.
					.
"Please tell me whether you approve or disapprove of the way [see below] is handling the election situation."
		Approve	Disap- prove	No Opinion
		%	%	%
	The Bush campaign	46	48	5
	The Gore campaign	45	51	5
	Florida Secretary of State Katherine Harris	40	50	10
					.
"How confident are you that the Florida results will be counted accurately: very confident, somewhat confident, not too confident, or not confident at all?"
		11/16	11/12
		%	%
	Very confident	19	21
	Somewhat confident	31	38
	Not too confident	18	20
	Not confident at all	28	18
	No opinion	4	3
					.
"Regardless of your preference, if the courts do not step in and the Florida vote tally becomes final without the hand recounts, would that be acceptable or unacceptable to you?"
		%
	Acceptable	61
	Unacceptable	36
	No opinion	2
					.
"Regardless of your preference, if the courts do step in and order the hand recounts to be included in the final Florida vote tally, would that be acceptable or unacceptable to you?"
		%
	Acceptable	71
	Unacceptable	26
	No opinion	2

*NBC News/Wall Street Journal* Poll** conducted by the polling organizations of Peter Hart (D) and Robert Teeter (R). Nov. 13, 2000. N=814 registered voters nationwide.
						.
"Who do you think should be declared the winner of the presidential election in Florida? Do you think George W. Bush should be declared the winner, do you think Al Gore should be declared the winner, or do you think it is too soon to say?"
		%
	Bush	36
	Gore	19
	Too soon to say	39
	Not sure	6
						.
"Who do you think will be the next president of the United States: George W. Bush or Al Gore?"
		%
	Bush	47
	Gore	24
	Depends (vol.)	10
	Not sure	19
						.
"In general, do you feel that there has been a fair and honest national vote count in the presidential election, or do you worry that the vote count has been unfair?"
		%
	Fair and honest	43
	Unfair	49
	Not sure	8
						.
"Do you approve or disapprove of the way [see below] has/have been handling the situation with the vote count in the presidential election?"
			Approve	Disap- prove	Mixed Feelings (vol.)	Not Sure
			%	%	%	%
	Al Gore and his campaign		47	38	10	5
	George W. Bush and his campaign		47	36	12	5
	The media		41	41	15	3
						.
"I’m going to read you a number of things that the Gore and Bush campaigns talked about as part of the vote-counting process. For each one, please tell me whether you think that it is an acceptable action to take or whether you think that the action is unacceptable.
			Accept- able	Unac- cept- able	Not Sure
			%	%	%
	"The Gore campaign asked for a hand recount in four Florida counties."
			58	40	2
						.
	"The Bush campaign indicated that it may seek a recount of the presidential votes in states where Al Gore won narrowly, such as in Iowa and Wisconsin."
			56	39	5
						.
	"The Gore campaign supported groups desiring a total revote in Palm Beach County, Florida."
			45	51	4
						.
	"The Bush campaign asked for a court ruling to prevent the use of a hand count in four Florida counties."
			41	55	4
						.
"Here are several options that might happen to determine which candidate would win the Florida electoral votes. As I read each item, please tell me whether it would or would not be an acceptable option to you.
			Accept- able	Unac- cept- able	Not Sure
			%	%	%
	"Accept the results from the machine recount and the overseas absentee ballots."
			71	26	3
						.
	"Do a hand recount in each of the four counties now disputed by the Democrats."
			50	47	3
						.
	"Do a hand recount in all Florida counties."
			43	54	3
						.
	"Have a new election, and re-vote in the entire state of Florida."
			34	64	2	.
						.
	"Have a new election, and re-vote only in Palm Beach County."
			25	72	3
						.
"Which of the following options do you think would be a better approach to take in Florida? (A) It would be better to stop the recount and court cases, and declare a winner now. OR, (B) It would be better to recount the ballots, even if it will take several weeks to declare a winner."
		%
	Declare a winner now	41
	Recount the ballots	55
	Not sure	4
						.
"How would you feel if Al Gore / George W. Bush were declared the winner of the presidential election? Would you say that you feel comfortable with him and prepared to support him as our new president, or not?"
		Gore	Bush
		%	%
	Prepared to support	66	69
	Not prepared to support	31	28
	Not sure	3	3

*ABC News/Washington* Post Poll**. Nov. 12, 2000. N=762 adults nationwide. MoE ą 3.5. Field work by TNS Intersearch.
					.
"Please tell me whether you approve or disapprove of the way [see below] is/are handling the election situation."
		Approve	Disap- prove	No Opinion
		%	%	%
	The news media	48	43	8
	The Bush campaign	46	45	9
	The Gore campaign	44	47	9
	Local officials in Florida	40	42	17
					.
"How do you feel about the election situation overall? Are you personally worried about it, or not worried?"
		%
	Worried	47
	Not worried	52
	No opinion	1
					.
"Do you think this situation reveals serious problems in this country’s system of electing the president, or do you think it’s just the kind of thing that can happen in a very close election?"
		%
	Reveals serious problems	32
	Just what happens	65
	No opinion	3
					.
"For future presidential elections, would you support or oppose changing to a system in which the president is elected by direct popular vote, instead of by the electoral college?"
		%
	Support	63
	Oppose	31
	No opinion	6
					.
"The candidate who wins Florida probably will win the electoral college and become the next president. Florida is recounting its votes because the election there was so close. Some people say the candidates should accept the recount in Florida when it’s completed, even if they think the voting there was unfair. Others say they should ask the courts to consider whether the voting was fair, even after the recount is completed. What do you think? Should the candidates [rotate] accept the recount OR ask the courts to look into these other issues?"
		%
	Accept the recount	67
	Ask courts to examine	28
	Depends (vol.)	1
	No opinion	4
					.
"As you may have heard, there have been complaints about the design of the ballot that was used in Palm Beach County, Florida. Have you seen that ballot in the newspaper or on television, or not?" If have seen: "In your own opinion, was that a fair or an unfair ballot?"
		%
	Have seen: Fair	39
	Have seen: Unfair	36
	Have not seen	23
	No opinion	2
					.
"As you probably know, the results of Tuesday’s presidential election are still unclear. Who do you personally want to see become the next president: [rotate] Al Gore or George W. Bush?"
		%
	Bush	45
	Gore	44
	Neither (vol.)	6
	Other (vol.)	1
	No opinion	4

*CNN/USA Today/Gallup Poll*. Nov. 11-12, 2000. N=1,014 adults nationwide. MoE ą 3 for the total sample, ą 5 for Gore voters, and ą 6 for Bush voters.
					.
"If Al Gore is declared the winner and inaugurated next January, would you accept him as the legitimate president, or not?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters
		%	%	%
	Would accept him	82	97	66
	Would not	16	1	31
	No opinion	2	2	3
					.
"If George W. Bush is declared the winner and inaugurated next January, would you accept him as the legitimate president, or not?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters
		%	%	%
	Would accept him	79	61	97
	Would not	19	36	1
	No opinion	2	3	2
					.
"Turning now to the situation in Florida: If George W. Bush has the most votes in Florida after the vote recount is finished and overseas ballots are completely counted next week, do you think Al Gore should [rotate] concede the election OR continue to wait for the results of other investigations into voter irregularities in Florida?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters
		%	%	%
	Concede	59	32	94
	Continue to wait	38	66	5
	No opinion	3	2	1
					.
"Would you favor or oppose having Florida officials recount the votes in certain counties by hand, as the Gore campaign requested?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters
		%	%	%
	Favor	55	85	20
	Oppose	42	13	78
	No opinion	3	2	2
					.
"How concerned are you that this controversy makes the United States look bad in the eyes of other countries: very concerned, somewhat concerned, not too concerned, or not at all concerned?"
		%
	Very concerned	36
	Somewhat concerned	28
	Not too concerned	19
	Not at all concerned	17
					.
"Thinking for a moment about the way in which the president is elected in this country, which would you prefer: [rotate] to amend the Constitution so the candidate who receives the most total votes nationwide wins the election, OR to keep the current system, in which the candidate who wins the most votes in the Electoral College wins the election?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters
		%	%	%
	Amend the Constitution	61	77	44
	Keep the current system	35	20	49
	Both/Neither (vol.)	2	1	4
	No opinion	2	2	3
					.
"Which comes closer to your point of view? [Rotate] The federal government should pass laws that would establish the same ballots and voting procedures in all states for all presidential elections. OR, Decisions on ballot and voting procedures should be left to state and local officials, as is currently the case."
		%
	Same for all states	67
	Leave to states and localities	29
	No opinion	4

*CBS News/New York Times* Poll**. Latest: Nov. 10-12, 2000. N=1,720 adults nationwide who were previously interviewed Nov. 1-6, 2000. MoE ą 2 (total sample).
					.
"Presidents are elected by the Electoral College, in which each state gets as many votes as it has members of Congress and can cast all of them for whoever wins in that state. Do you think we should keep the Electoral College, or should we amend the Constitution and elect as president whoever gets the most votes in the whole country?"
		2000	1987
		%	%
	Keep Electoral College	31	33
	Amend the Constitution	60	61
	Don't know	9	6
					.
"It is possible in our election system for one presidential candidate to receive the most state ELECTORAL votes, while another candidate receives the most POPULAR votes nationwide. In this case, who do you think has a MORE legitimate claim to the presidency: the electoral vote winner or the popular vote winner, or does neither have a legitimate claim?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters
		%	%	%
	Electoral vote winner	39	24	67
	Popular vote winner	45	63	21
	Neither	10	7	7
	Don't know	6	6	5
					.
"Do you think that a candidate who wins the Electoral College vote but does NOT win the popular vote can lead the country effectively, or not?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters
		%	%	%
	Can lead effectively	72	62	90
	Cannot lead effectively	15	24	5
	Don't know	13	14	5
					.
"Do you approve or disapprove of the way the Bush campaign is handling the uncertain outcome of the presidential election?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters
		%	%	%
	Approve	46	18	86
	Disapprove	40	71	6
	Don't know	14	11	8
					.
"Do you approve or disapprove of the way the Gore campaign is handling the uncertain outcome of the presidential election?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters
		%	%	%
	Approve	47	73	22
	Disapprove	41	17	70
	Don't know	12	10	8
					.
"Do you think either of the presidential campaigns is placing politics above the good of the country?" If "Yes": "Which campaign is doing that: the Bush campaign or the Gore campaign?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters
		%	%	%
	Yes -- Bush campaign	16	28	2
	Yes -- Gore campaign	22	6	47
	Yes -- Both equally (vol.)	25	26	21
	No, neither	27	33	24
	Don't know	10	7	6
					.
Asked only of voters: "Given the kinds of problems that have been reported in Florida, how much confidence do you have that YOUR vote was counted properly: a lot, some, not much, or no confidence at all?"
		Voters
		%
	A lot	69
	Some	21
	Not much	6
	No confidence at all	3
	Don't know	2
					.
"As you may know, all of the major television networks made mistakes on election night in first calling the state of Florida for Al Gore, and later in calling it for George W. Bush. Which statement comes closer to your view? These were serious mistakes and there is no excuse for the networks broadcasting these calls. OR, These were serious mistakes, but it is understandable that these kinds of mistakes happened."
		%
	No excuse	46
	Understandable	52
	Don't know	2
					.
"When do you think the election will finally be resolved? Will that happen within the next few days, within the next month, or will it take longer than a month to resolve?"
		%
	Within the next few days	28
	Within the next month	44
	Longer than a month	19
	Don't know	9
					.
"Do you think the fact that we do not yet know who the next president will be is a big problem for this country, or do you think that the delay is not really a problem?"
		%
	Is a big problem	35
	Not really a problem	62
	Don't know	3

Pew Research Center for the People & the Press survey conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates. Nov. 10-12, 2000. N=1,113 Nov. 2000 election voters nationwide who were previously interviewed in Sept. 2000 or Oct. 2000. MoE ą 3.
				.
"As you may know, the Florida vote for president is still being counted awaiting absentee ballots. If the recount shows that George W. Bush won the state of Florida by a narrow margin giving him a majority in the Electoral College, do you think he will have legitimately won the election, or not?" If "not legitimately": "Why not? Because Al Gore actually won more of the popular vote, OR because you have doubts about whether the votes were counted fairly and accurately?"
			%
	Yes, will have won legitimately		68
	No -- Doubts about fairness, accuracy		15
	No -- Gore won more votes		6
	No -- Both (vol.)		5
	No -- Don't know why		1
	Don't know		5
				.
"If the recount shows that George W. Bush won the state of Florida by a narrow margin giving him a majority in the Electoral College, do you think Al Gore should concede the election to George W. Bush or should he contest this in the courts because of voting problems in Florida?"
		%
	Gore should concede	67
	Gore should contest	26
	Don't know	7
				.
"Has the outcome of this election increased your belief that every vote counts, or has it raised doubts in your mind about the importance of your vote?"
		%
	Increased belief	74
	Raised doubts	23
	Don't know	3
				.
"As you may know, questions have been raised about the ballot used in Palm Beach, Florida. Many voters say they were confused by it. Do you think the entire county should vote again or not?"
		%
	Should vote again	36
	Should not	59
	Don't know	5
				.
"As you may know, the outcome of this year's presidential election will be decided by a very narrow margin in Florida and several other states. All things considered, do you think we will have an accurate count of the votes in Florida and other close states, or not?"
		%
	Will have an accurate count	49
	Will not	42
	Don't know	9

*CNN/Time* Poll** conducted by Yankelovich Partners. Nov. 10, 2000. N=1,154 adults nationwide. MoE ą 2.9 for the total sample, ą 4.7 for Gore voters and for Bush voters.
					.
"Suppose after all the recounting is done, George W. Bush becomes president because he won the most votes in the Electoral College, even though more people across the country voted for Al Gore. Would you consider that to be a legitimate outcome, or not?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters
		%	%	%
	Yes, legitimate	59	40	83
	No, not legitimate	36	55	14
	Not sure	5	5	3
					.
"If George W. Bush is elected president, do you think he will have been elected by accident, or don't you feel that way?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters
		%	%	%
	Yes, elected by accident	29	52	6
	No, don't feel that way	65	39	93
	Not sure	6	9	1
					.
"Would you approve or disapprove of an amendment to the Constitution which would do away with the Electoral College and base the election of a president on the total vote cast throughout the nation?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters
		%	%	%
	Approve	63	76	50
	Disapprove	29	18	40
	Not sure	8	6	10
					.
"Regardless of whom you support, who do you think will become the next president of the United States . . . ?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters
		%	%	%
	George W. Bush	69	50	86
	Al Gore	19	35	6
	Other (vol.)	1	1	-
	Not sure	11	14	8
					.
"Regardless of the outcome of the vote, who do you think would make a better president . . . ?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters
		%	%	%
	Al Gore	44	88	4
	George W. Bush	44	3	90
	Other (vol.)	3	2	2
	Not sure	9	7	4
					.
"Thinking about the way the media declared winners in Florida on election night, do you think the media acted responsibly or irresponsibly?"
		%
	Responsibly	17
	Irresponsibly	79
	Not sure	4
					.
"In announcing election results, do you think the media are more interested in getting results out first, or more interested in getting the results right?"
		%
	Getting the results out first	87
	Getting the results right	10
	Not sure	3
					.
"Do you think Al Gore would be the next president if Ralph Nader had not run for president?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters
		%	%	%
	Yes	52	76	31
	No	35	14	55
	Not sure	13	10	14
					.
"If Al Gore does not become the next president this time, do you think he should run again for president in 2004?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters
		%	%	%
	Yes	58	74	38
	No	30	15	50
	Not sure	12	11	12

Newsweek Poll conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates. Nov. 9-10, 2000. N=1,000 adults nationwide. MoE ą 4 for the total sample, ą 6 for Gore voters and for Bush voters.
						.
"Presidents are now elected by the Electoral College, in which each state gets as many votes as it has members of Congress and can cast all of them for whoever wins that state. Do you think we should keep the Electoral College or that we should amend the Constitution and elect whoever gets the most votes in the whole country?"
		%
	Keep Electoral College	33
	Amend the Constitution	57
	Don't know	10
						.
"As you probably know, the outcome of the presidential election depends on whether George W. Bush or Al Gore is awarded the state of Florida. Right now, which ONE of the following do you think is more important? Getting matters resolved as soon as possible so we know who our next president is. Making certain to remove all reasonable doubt that the vote count has been fair and accurate."
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters
		%	%	%
	Resolve as soon as possible	25	13	40
	Remove all reasonable doubt	72	86	55
	Don't know	3	1	5
						.
"Before it became clear that the vote in Florida was as close as we know now, Al Gore had conceded victory to George W. Bush. Do you think Gore did the right thing or the wrong thing in withdrawing his concession until the questions about the vote in Florida are resolved?"
		ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters
		%	%	%
	Right thing	66	79	54
	Wrong thing	22	15	31
	Don't know	12	6	15
						.
"At what point do you think Bush and Gore should agree to accept the Florida results as final? As soon as the state-mandated recount of the vote is completed. Wait about a week until all the absentee ballots from military personnel and others living abroad can be counted. Wait longer, if necessary, to make sure that legal issues involving vote fraud and other irregularities can be resolved."
			ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters
			%	%	%
	When recount is completed		17	11	26
	When overseas ballots are counted		44	37	58
	When legal issues are resolved		36	51	14
	Don't know		3	1	2
						.
"From what you've seen or heard about the issue of voters in Palm Beach County misinterpreting their ballot and mistakenly voting for Pat Buchanan instead of Al Gore, what do you think should happen? Should the entire county be asked to vote again, or should the ballot problem there be seen as the kind of honest mistake that occurs in many elections, not serious enough to require a new vote?"
			ALL	Gore Voters	Bush Voters
			%	%	%
	Entire county should vote again		48	77	16
	Not serious enough to require a new vote		46	19	80
	Don't know		6	4	4
						.
"As you may know, the TV networks had to twice retract their calls for who won Florida on election night. Do you think the networks' problems with the Florida vote reflect such serious flaws in their system that they should stop trying to project election outcomes, or was just an isolated incident and there is too much public interest for them to stop making projections?"
			%
	They should stop projecting outcomes		57
	It was just an isolated incident		37
	Don't know		6
						.
"Do you think the uncertainty about the vote in Florida and the delay in knowing who won the presidency are a sign of weakness in our political system, or are a sign of strength that we are peacefully taking the steps necessary to make sure the right candidate is declared the winner of a very close election?"
		%
	A sign of weakness	24
	A sign of strength	69
	Don't know	7
						.
"Suppose that George W. Bush is eventually awarded Florida's electoral votes and wins the presidency despite losing the national popular vote by a narrow margin to Al Gore. If Bush were to be elected in this way, do you think it would seriously hurt his ability to be an effective national leader, or not?"
		%
	Would seriously hurt	25
	Would not	69
	Don't know	6
						.
"Given the closeness of the presidential election and the close partisan division of the House and Senate, do you think the new president and Congress will be able to work together to get things done on issues such as taxes and health care, or that they won't be able to get things done?"
			%
	They will be able to work together		60
	They won't be able to get things done		30
	Don't know		10

NBC News Poll conducted by the polling organizations of Peter Hart (D) and Robert Teeter (R). Nov. 8, 2000. N=505 adults nationwide. MoE +/- 4.5.
			.
"Which of the following best describes how you would feel if [see below] were elected president: optimistic and confident that he would do a good job, satisfied and hopeful that he would do a good job, uncertain and wondering whether he would do a good job, or pessimistic and worried that he would do a bad job?"
		%
	Al Gore
	Optimistic and confident	31
	Satisfied and hopeful	30
	Uncertain and wondering	19
	Pessimistic and worried	18
	Not sure	2
			.
	George W. Bush
	Optimistic and confident	28
	Satisfied and hopeful	24
	Uncertain and wondering	24
	Pessimistic and worried	22
	Not sure	2
			.
"As you may know, the outcome of the presidential election has not been decided because no candidate has received a majority of electoral votes. In general, do you feel that there has been a fair and honest national vote count in the presidential election, or do you worry that the vote count has been unfair?"
		%
	Fair and honest	48
	Unfair	44
	Not sure	8
			.
"As you may know, presidents are chosen not by direct popular vote, but by the electoral college system in which each state receives electoral votes based on its population. Over the past one hundred years, the winning presidential candidate has won both the popular and electoral vote. Let us suppose in this election that one candidate were to win the popular vote and one candidate were to win the electoral vote. Who would you favor serving as the next president of the United States: the one who wins the popular vote or the one who wins the electoral vote?"
		%
	Popular-vote winner	56
	Electoral-vote winner	39
	Not sure	5
			.
"If the next president were to win the electoral college vote but lose the overall popular vote, do you think that it would or would not affect his ability to govern?"
		%
	Would	20
	Would not	72
	Not sure	8

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