Washington Post has a new poll out revealing the striking new numbers of Americans supporting Hillary Clinton for the Democratic nomination for president. She now leads with a 53% majority and Obama is in second place at 20% - for a clear 33 point advantage. John Edwards is in third place with 13% of the voters.
More on the flip.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/...
There's plenty more good news for Hillary in this poll with a clear majority trusting her on the issues of Iraq, and health care. She's also seen as the candidate who best represents Democratic values.
On major issues, Democrats are far more likely to trust her than her main competitors -- 52 percent trust her most on Iraq, compared with 22 percent who trust Obama most on the war and 17 percent who trust Edwards most. On health care, 66 percent trust her most to handle the issue, compared with 15 percent for Obama and 14 percent for Edwards. Half see Clinton as the candidate who best reflects the "core values" of the Democratic Party.
On the questions of strength and experience or new ideas and directions, she tops the polls as well.
Two months ago, 51 percent of voters seeking a candidate of "strength and experience" picked Clinton as their favorite. Now 62 percent of voters in this category support Clinton.
Among those looking for a "new direction and new ideas," Clinton now has an edge, with support from 45 percent -- compared with 31 percent for Obama. Previously, these "change voters" were split evenly between Clinton and Obama.
She's also the first choice pick for both men and women.
In the new poll, Clinton has gained among both women and men. She leads Obama in the race for the Democratic nomination by 22 percentage points among men, and by 42 points among women. Fully 57 percent of women said they would support Clinton in a primary, compared with 15 percent for Obama and 13 percent for Edwards.
And she is the leader among both African Americans and whites.
Clinton also has a wide lead among whites, besting both Obama and Edwards by a 3 to 1 ratio. She has a narrower edge among African Americans: 51 percent support Clinton, compared with 38 percent for Obama.
In closing I just want to say, that she is the hardest working candidate out there. There is nothing inevitable about her candidacy. These numbers reflect the experience, the tenacity and the care that she is putting in to her campaign. It's been a very good week for Clinton - great fundraising numbers and now great poll numbers to match.