Bernie Bounce: Support For Sanders With Democrats Grows By 10 Points In Iowa

Last updated on September 25th, 2023 at 01:41 pm

The latest polling revealed that support for Bernie Sanders has increased by ten points among Democrats in Iowa after the Senator from Vermont officially announced his bid for the Democratic nomination.

According to the most recent Quinnipiac University poll of Iowa, Sen. Sanders has gone from 5% in February to 15% in May. The poll had Sen. Elizabeth Warren at 19% in February, but after she has repeatedly ruled out a run for the nomination, she was not included in the current round of polling.

Logically, it appears that Warren supporters should be a target for the Sanders campaign, but Hillary Clinton was the most popular first and second choice of Iowa Democratic caucus goers. When her first and second choice support was combined, Clinton received 79% support. The first and second favorite support for Sanders was 25%. (Note: percentages add up to more than one hundred.) Clinton’s 2016 is looking like a reversal of her 2008 Iowa caucus experience while Sanders is in a position to be a legitimate second.

Hillary Clinton had a jaw-dropping 83% approval rating with Iowa Democrats. The former Sec. of State’s approval rating with very liberal Democrats was 88%. Sen. Sanders is largely unknown in Iowa. His favorability split was 44%-6%, but 50% of those polled did not know enough about him. Sanders had a favorability rating of 68% among those who considered themselves to be very liberal.

What this polling illustrates is that Hillary Clinton is a historically strong candidate. Not since Dwight D. Eisenhower has a non-incumbent presidential candidate had this much support for his/her campaign. The data also hints that there may be room for only one more legitimate Democratic candidate in the race. At this very early stage, it looks like that candidate will be Sen. Bernie Sanders.

One issue with the Quinnipiac Poll is that Vice President Biden was included in the polling. The numbers will shift after Biden is dropped from the poll. It is safe to assume that some if not most of the Biden support will shift to Hillary Clinton, but there will be an opening there for Sanders to pick up some additional support.

Bernie Sanders has gotten a bigger bounce from announcing his campaign than many expected. Sanders is not a fringe candidate. He will likely be the top challenger to Hillary Clinton in the Democratic field, as the Democratic primary looks like it will feature two strong voices debating the issues in 2016.

Follow Me
Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements. Awards and  Professional Memberships Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association

Recent Posts

American Muslims Who Abandoned Democrats Are Realizing Trump Screwed Them

Donald Trump has been saying for a year that he will allow Netanyahu to do…

18 mins ago

Trump And Republicans Aren’t Likely To Have Total Control Of The Governmment For Long

Trump and the Republicans are racing the clock because recent history shows that they won't…

22 hours ago

CDC Employees Are Resigning In Droves As They Refuse To Work For RFK Jr.

Trump's nomination of RFK Jr. to run Health and Human Services has resulted in CDC…

1 day ago

Top Senate Democrat Tells House Ethics Committee To Preserve Matt Gaetz Report

Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) has told the House Ethics Committee to…

2 days ago

Matt Gaetz’s Nomination To Be Attorney General May Already Be Doomed

Trump's nomination of Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) to be Attorney General may be doomed to…

3 days ago

Trump’s Immigration Plan To Kill Jobs And Raise Prices

Economists are warning that Trump's mass deportation plan will kill American jobs and raise prices. 

3 days ago