WASHINGTON (CNN) The Republican Party has hit a new low.
Just 34 percent of Americans in a Gallup Poll released Thursday say they have a favorable view of the party, down 40 percent from a month ago, before the election. What's worse: 61 percent of Americans have an unfavorable view of the Republican Party. According to Gallup, that unfavorable rating is the highest the polling organization has recorded for the GOP since the measure was established in 1992. The poll of national adults was conducted on November 13-16 with a three percent margin of error. The numbers are slightly up from a CNN poll released last week that indicated a 54 percent unfavorable rating for Republicans. Only 38 percent of those polled had a favorable rating for the party. Meanwhile, Democrats continue to bask in the glow of President-elect Barack Obama's historic victory on November 4. The Gallup poll suggests that 55 percent of Americans hold a favorable opinion of the Democratic Party, with 39 percent saying they have an unfavorable view. Those numbers are mostly unchanged from a mid-October survey. As the debate rages within GOP ranks over where to take the party, the poll might offer some guidance. Most Republicans 59 percent want the party to become more conservative, according to the poll. Another 28 percent want it to remain about the same ideologically, while only 12 percent would prefer to see the Republican Party become less conservative. Independents are split on whether the party should track left or right: 35 percent of independent voters say the GOP should become more conservative, and 35 percent say less conservative. http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/11/20/poll-gop-image-goes-from-bad-to-worse/ http://tinyurl.com/5gx4oq
