One-third of U.S. adults would vote for Barack Obama if he was the Democratic nominee for president, according to a just-released Harris Poll. The Harris Poll of 2,383 U.S. adults was conducted online between May 8 and May 14. Sen. Obama, D-Ill., has been consistently running second to Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., in the race for the Democratic nomination, even though he is far less known. Low support for Obama could stem from one simple fact: many Americans aren't familiar enough with his campaign.
Who knows Obama best? The study suggests that black voters are the most familiar with his campaign. And not only are they familiar with Obama, they tend to like him best. Sixty-three percent of blacks polled like the senator's track record, 73 percent like his political opinions, and 84 percent say they like Obama as a person.
While 76 percent of blacks say they would vote for Obama, only 41 percent of Latinos and 26 percent of whites support the biracial senator.
Even Democrats are not completely sold on Barack Obama. Three in five Democrats, 60 percent, say they would vote for him if he was the Democratic nominee, while 19 percent say they would not and 20 percent say they are unsure.
Outside of the black population, it seems that U.S. adults neither like nor dislike Obama. Three in ten of the total population polled are not sure if they like or dislike the senator as a person, one-third are not sure if they like or dislike his political opinions, and 44 percent are not sure about his track record as a U.S. senator.
Democrats and blacks give him the most support overall but are still split about his credentials as a solid candidate. Even though 76 percent of Democrats feel Obama is very intelligent, only half of those polled liked his political track record.
Obama's race was also taken into consideration as two-thirds of Democrats agreed that his racial background would be an asset to his candidacy.
It seems that Obama's biggest barrier to the presidency is educating Americans on his precise political opinions and swaying them toward his direction. Last night's Democratic debate, the second of six primary debates, offered audiences a closer look at each candidate's campaign, including Clinton and Obama. This debate, which focused on Iraq, was pivotal for a discussion of LGBT rights, especially the controversial "don't ask, don't tell" governmental policy.
The Democratic candidates were unanimous in their support for repealing the policy, which prohibits LGBT people from declaring their orientation but also prohibits military commanders from inquiring into the personal lives of service men and women.
For more on the candidates' views on this and other issues, read the June issue of DiversityInc magazine.
Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese was happy to see the issues of LGBT people brought to the forefront of the presidential debate.
"It is extremely encouraging to finally see the focus of the debate around the lives of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Americans center around extending the American value of equality to all people," said Solmonese. "2008 is not 2004, and the American people have already put out the warning that divisive, wedge politics that pit neighbor against neighbor will not be tolerated."
The Democratic debate opened up discussion on other LGBT issues such as amending the Family and Medical Leave Act and the Uniting Americans Family Act for same-sex couples. Under the Family and Medical Leave Act, LGBT couples would be allowed up to 12 work weeks of unpaid leave for childcare or a serious health condition, the same as other married couples. The Uniting Americans Act would allow LGBT citizens to bring their foreign national partners into the United States.
On the issue of gay marriage, all candidates but Dennis Kucinich were opposed, but all did support civil unions for same-sex partners. They all supported extending federal benefits to same-sex couples and their children as well as federal government recognition of a state's sanctioned same-sex unions for the purposes of benefits and taxation at both the state and federal levels.
More Election 2008 Stories >>
