Criticisms of Warren affect few Democrats

February 19, 2019, 10:13 PM GMT+0

Two in three Democrats hold a favorable opinion of Elizabeth Warren

Massachusetts Senator and Presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren was criticized last week when an investigation by The Washington Post unearthed her Texas Bar registration card, which listed her race as “American Indian.” Warren had previously released a DNA test to show a fraction of her DNA was Native American. But the latest Economist/YouGov Poll suggests that the controversy (and an apology) hasn’t significantly impacted her standing, at least with Democrats.

Warren remains equally popular with men and with women Democrats, but she scores better with liberal Democrats than moderate ones. Of Democrats who describe themselves as liberal, 79% view her favorably, compared to just 53% of moderate Democrats. Twice as many Democrats call themselves liberals than ideological moderates.

Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar just entered the presidential race to a chorus of criticism of her management style. She isn’t as well-known as some of the other candidates. Nearly half of Democrats have yet to form an opinion of her. Those with an opinion see Klobuchar favorably, 39% to 15%. Self-identified liberal Democrats are more aware of many declared candidates, including Klobuchar. Of liberal Democrats, 54% give Klobuchar a favorable rating, 15% do not.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi continues to be among the most popular Democratic officeholders and office-seekers. Her overall approval rating is as high as President Donald Trump’s, while the percentage who disapprove of her performance as Speaker is 12-percentage points lower than the President’s disapproval rating. Nearly three-quarters of Democrats approve of Pelosi’s job performance.

Pelosi’s favorable rating with Democrats is 74%, the highest of any asked about in this week’s Economist/YouGov Poll. Once again, Pelosi outscores Democratic presidential candidates, including Bernie Sanders, Warren, California Senator Kamala Harris, and all other announced Democratic contenders. The Speaker of the House also is better liked by Democrats than her Senate counterpart, Minority Leader Chuck Schumer.

But it is worth noting two other popular Democrats who are not running for President. New York Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is just about as well-known by Democrats as Harris and Warren, and well-liked, particularly by liberals. 73% of liberal Democrats have a favorable opinion of Ocasio-Cortez, while only 9% are unfavorable. Among moderate Democrats, the comparable ratings are 46% favorable, 16% unfavorable.

Stacey Abrams, who gave the official Democratic response to the State of the Union message last week, rose in name-awareness following her speech. Abrams was already fairly well-known to Democrats beforehand, because of her losing battle for Governor of Georgia last fall. Among liberal Democrats, 65% have a favorable opinion of Abrams, compared with 40% of moderate Democrats.

Read the full toplines and tables results here

Photo: Getty