Poll: GOP should be more like Sarah Palin

Rasmussen Reports released the results of a new national telephone survey Thursday which shows a majority (55%) of Republicans and a plurality (46%) of unaffiliated voters think the GOP should follow Alaska Governor Sarah Palin in the future.

A plurality of Republican voters (43%) say the GOP was too moderate during the two terms of President George W. Bush. According to Rasmussen:

Unaffiliated voters are much more closely divided. Thirty-nine percent (39%) say the party has been too conservative over the past eight years, while 34% think it’s been too moderate. For 14%, the party’s been about right, and 13% are undecided.

A majority of Democrats (64%) consider the Republican Party to be too conservative, and 42% think it should follow McCain in the future. That's understandable, seeing how well his candidacy worked out for them during November's presidential election.

Among all voters, Gov. Palin's favorables are 52%, versus unfavorables of 46%. 51% of Republicans have a Very Favorable opinion of Palin, while 51% of Democrats view her in an Unfavorable light. 35% of unaffiliated voters have a Very Favorable regard for Palin, while 15% have a Very Unfavorable view.

An earlier survey conducted on November 4 showed that 81% of Democrats and 57% of unaffiliated voters had an unfavorable view of the Alaska governor. Nearly three months after the election, she has improved her unfavorables among Democrats by a remarkable 30%. Her unfavorables are also down among unaffiliated voters.

- JP