Poll: After 2014 Midterms 43 Percent Want Neither Party to Control Congress

As the 2014 midterms are
approaching, the latest
Reason-Rupe national poll finds 40 percent of Americans
plan to vote for the Democratic candidate running in their district
while 36 percent plan to vote Republican. However, when asked which
party they want controlling Congress, a strong plurality (43
percent) opted for neither Republican nor Democrats to control
government. With neither major political parties controlling
Congress, divided government and hence gridlock would continue.

COMPLETE POLL RESULTS

While millennials would vote similar to older cohorts on
Election Day, if given the choice 54 percent would actually prefer
neither party to control Congress, 31 would favor Democratic
control and 11 would opt for Republican control. Most of the shift
among young people occurs among those who lean Republican, not
Democratic.

Among independents—the group often used as a barometer for the
median voter—fully 60 percent want neither the Democrats nor
Republicans to control Congress. If they had to choose between only
those two parties, they are evenly split with 33 percent who say
they’d vote for the Republican candidate, 30 percent for the
Democratic candidate, with the remainder voting for another party’s
candidate or are undecided. This reflects what the Pew Research
Center has documented showing
that since 2009 political independents have surpassed Democrats as
the most likely political group.

Election 2016

While the 2016 presidential election is still a few years away,
many are already sizing up potential candidates. Not surprisingly,
Hillary Clinton leads among Democrats with 64 percent who plan to
vote for her. Vice President Joe Biden and Sen. Elizabeth Warren
come in a distant second and third with 11 percent and 6 percent
respectively. Gov. Andrew Cuomo garners 2 percent and Gov. Brian
Schweitzer follows with 1 percent.

Indicative of the current Republican Party today, Republican
candidates split into basically a 5-way tie. Coming in first is
former governor Mike Huckabee with 15 percent, Rep. Paul Ryan at 12
percent, Sen. Rand Paul at 11 percent, former governor Jeb Bush at
11 percent, and Gov. Chris Christie at 10 percent. Sen. Ted Cruz
and Sen. Marco Rubio tie at 6 percent each, Gov. Scott Walker at 5
percent, and Gov. Bobby Jindal at 1 percent.

Reason-Rupe also asked Democrats and independents which
Republican they preferred, finding that Chris Christie has the
greatest appeal among Democrats while independents opt for Rand
Paul.  Not surprisingly, Hillary Clinton won out when
Republicans and independents were asked which Democrat they
preferred.

Nationwide telephone poll conducted March 26-30 2014 interviewed
1003 adults on both mobile (503) and landline (500) phones, with a
margin of error +/- 3.6%. Princeton Survey Research Associates
International executed the nationwide Reason-Rupe survey. Columns
may not add up to 100% due to rounding. Full poll results,
detailed tables, and methodology found here. Sign
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Reason-Rupe poll here.