According to a new Harris Poll, most Americans would probably not vote for a Muslim presidential candidate. Pluralities say the same about transgender, gay, atheist or agnostic candidates. And, for some reason, Millennials have a real problem with Mormons.
More below the fold.
Reposted from Wonky News Nerd.
It’s not surprising, but it’s frustrating nonetheless. According to a new Harris Poll, most Americans say they would be unlikely to vote for a Muslim presidential candidates, while pluralities would be reluctant to vote for someone who identifies as a transgender, gay, atheist or agnostic.
Among those polled, 52 percent say they'd be either "not that likely" or "not at all likely" to consider voting for a Muslim candidate, while only 28 percent who would be "very" or "somewhat" likely to do so. When asked about voting for a transgender individual, 48 percent responded "not that likely" or "not at all likely,” while 34 percent who would be at least somewhat likely to do so. For atheist or agnostic candidates, the percentages were 45 percent and 39 percent, respectively.
More from the poll:
Americans are more split on the idea of a Hindu candidate (39 percent not likely vs. 37 percent likely) and a candidate unwilling to discuss his or her religious views (40 percent and 41 percent, respectively).
As for a candidate who won't discuss [his or her] sexuality, 43 percent would be likely to consider such a candidate while 36 percent would not. While likely support outpaces opposition in this case, it's important to note that this still means fewer than half of Americans would support a candidate declining to discuss this matter but who otherwise aligns with their political worldview. Similar results can be seen for Buddhist (43 percent likely and 36 percent not) and Mormon (47 percent and 35 percent, respectively) candidates, as well as candidates identifying as bisexual (46 percent and 38 percent, respectively) and homosexual (49 percent and 34 percent, respectively).
The safe bets? Majorities of Americans would be likely to consider voting for Protestant (72 percent), Catholic (72 percent) and Jewish (69 percent) candidates, candidates without children (72 percent), and candidates who have never been married (70 percent).
The poll also found the kinds of generational and partisan differences you might expect. For example, a whopping 74 percent of those ages 69 and over (referred to as “Matures”) would be unlikely to vote for a Muslim. That percentage drops to 58 percent among Baby Boomers, 51 percent for Gen Xers and 39 percent of Millennials. Likewise, 73 percent of Republicans would be unlikely to vote for a Muslim. For Democrats, it’s 39 percent; for independents, it’s 53 percent.
The only real surprise in the poll was this: Millennials are more likely than any other generation to display reluctance to vote for Mormon candidates. Forty-two percent of them expressed that sentiment, compared with 34 percent of Gen Xers, 33 percent of Baby Boomers and 27 percent of Matures. Could this be influence of South Park at work? Harris does not say.