Sanders has repeatedly topped the charts on similar surveys and can now safely claim being the nation's most liked politician
By Jon Queally
More than any other option available to them, a majority of the people in the United States of America prefer the socialist—the one who calls for Medicare for All, tuition-free college, higher taxes on the wealthy, a speedy transition to renewable energy to fight climate change, and an end to the corporate takeover of democracy—most of all.
But The Hill buried the lede.
Provided an exclusive look at a new Harvard-Harris poll (pdf) on Tuesday surveying the popularity of elected officials with a national profile, the news outlet chose to highlight the nation's most unpopular lawmaker—who turns out to be Republican Majority Leader in the U.S. Senate Mitch McConnell of Kentucky—instead of the person who is now the most popular, the self-identified socialist and Independent senator from Vermont, Bernie Sanders.
And it's not the first time.
Once a goddamn week there's a new poll saying Bernie Sanders is the most popular politician in America. How come this never gets to the DNC?
— Shuja Haider (@shujaxhaider) August 24, 2017
According to the poll—conducted online from Aug. 17-22 with 2,263 Democrats, Republicans, and registered Independents—Sanders is currently the only politician in the whole country who "a majority of Americans actually like." Among the respondents, 54 percent view Sanders favorably with just 36 percent taking the opposite view. Compared to others included in the survey—including Republicans like McConnell, President Donald Trump, and Vice President Mike Pence as well as top Democratic leaders like Hillary Clinton, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, and Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California—it wasn't even close.
"When it comes to the most popular demographics," Bustle reports, "the poll showed Sanders scored highest among millennials—people aged 18-34, who expressed a 62 percent approval rating. Furthermore, 58 percent of women registered to vote view Sanders favorably, as do 55 percent of men."
As the popularity of socialism has surged since Sanders' dramatic challenge for the Democratic Party presidential nomination last year, so too has the senator's national profile.
Since his high-profile run, Sanders has repeatedly topped the charts on similar surveys and can now safely claim being the nation's most popular politician.
In April, as Common Dreams reported, an earlier Harvard-Harris poll also showed that no active politician was more popular than Sanders. In July, a Morning Consult poll found that Sanders was the U.S. Senate's most approved member, with a 75 percent approval rating. And in April of 2016—at the height of the primary season—an Associated Press-GfK survey revealed that Sanders was the most liked of any candidate then in the race for a major party nomination.
Originally appeared at Commondreams.org
Photo: Edward Kimmel/Flickr/CC