The following is a national survey of likely voters published by The Heartland Institute, a national free-market think tank, and Rasmussen Reports, one of America’s leading polling firms. The survey is published here publicly for the first time. It will also be published by Rasmussen Reports on November 25 or 26, along with another survey about gun rights.
Among the most important findings from the survey is that many of Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren’s own supporters–as well as self-identified Democrats–say they would not vote for a presidential candidate who identifies as a socialist.
National Survey of 1,000 Likely Voters on Socialism and Sanders, Warren, Conducted November 13-14, 2019
1* Which is better – a free-market economic system or socialism?
69% A free-market economic system
12% Socialism
18% Not sure
2* Would you vote for a presidential candidate who identifies himself or herself as a socialist?
26% Yes
50% No
24% Not sure
3* Do you have a very favorable, somewhat favorable, somewhat unfavorable or very unfavorable impression of Bernie Sanders?
18% Very favorable
29% Somewhat favorable
17% Somewhat unfavorable
31% Very unfavorable
5% Not sure
4* Do you have a very favorable, somewhat favorable, somewhat unfavorable or very unfavorable impression of Elizabeth Warren?
17% Very favorable
25% Somewhat favorable
15% Somewhat unfavorable
34% Very unfavorable
9% Not sure
IMPORTANT CROSSTABS Related to These Questions
*Note that in the following results, those who answered “other” when asked for party affiliation are referred to as “independents” below. Respondents were given three options for party affiliation: “Republican,” “Democrat,” and “other.”
- 31% of Democrats and 50% of independents said they would not “vote for a presidential candidate who identifies himself or herself as a socialist.”
- 36% of respondents who said they work for the government said they would “vote for a presidential candidate who identifies himself or herself as a socialist,” the highest of any employment demographic we tested.
- 20% of respondents with a “very favorable” impression of Bernie Sanders said they would not “vote for a presidential candidate who identifies himself or herself as a socialist.” 17% of respondents with a “very favorable” impression of Sanders said they were “not sure” if they would “vote for a presidential candidate who identifies himself or herself as a socialist.”
- 19% of respondents with a “very favorable” impression of Elizabeth Warren said they would not “vote for a presidential candidate who identifies himself or herself as a socialist.” 19% of respondents with a “very favorable” impression of Warren said they were “not sure” if they would “vote for a presidential candidate who identifies himself or herself as a socialist.”
NOTE: Margin of Sampling Error, +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence.
Stopping Socialism is a project of The Heartland Institute and The Henry Dearborn Center for Human Rights, a nonprofit association of professionals and scholars.
