Election Survey.pdf

Telephone interviews were conducted among 1,963 adults, including 1,508 registered voters, from October 25-29, 2000. The survey has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.5 percentage points for the total sample and plus or minus 3 percentage points for registered voters.

Respondents were asked about their thoughts on the presidential election, voter registration, and voting history. 66% of respondents had given quite a lot of thought to the election, while 24% had given only a little thought. 77% of respondents were registered to vote, with 74% being absolutely certain of their registration.

When asked about their voting frequency, 52% of respondents said they always vote, while 30% said they vote nearly always. In a hypothetical presidential election, 43% of respondents would vote for Al Gore, 45% for George W. Bush, 4% for Ralph Nader, and 1% for Pat Buchanan.

Respondents who supported a candidate were asked what they liked most about that candidate. For Al Gore, 48% liked his stand on issues, 27% his experience, 16% his leadership ability, and 4% his personality. For George W. Bush, 59% liked his stand on issues, 21% his leadership ability, 10% his experience, and 5% his personality.

Respondents who did not choose a candidate were asked if they might vote for that candidate in November. 9% of respondents who did not choose Al Gore said they might vote for him, while 44% had definitely decided not to vote for him. 10% of respondents who did not choose George W. Bush said they might vote for him, while 41% had definitely decided not to vote for him.