Leon County residents are hoping Hilary Clinton and Jeb Bush duke it out for the presidency next year. That’s according to a survey on current and potential Republican and Democratic presidential candidates.
The local research company Downs and St. Germaine, formerly Kerr-Downs, did the report. It asked more than 400 local residents how they view the field of current and possible presidential contenders. Hilary Clinton and Jeb Bush are perceived to be the presumptive presidential nominees. But company President Joseph St. Germaine says not to put too much stock into any poll:
“so much will change in the next year. However, I think there’s always utility in taking a snapshot. And understanding what it is. This is what people think right now, even though we’re a year out.”
Respondents associate the words moderate, promising and “same old” to Bush, while “corrupt, disaster, and hopeful” were attributed to Clinton. Donald Trump and Ben Carson and Marco Rubio are ranked lower on the Republican side, while Vice President Joe Biden, Bernie Saunders and Elizabeth Warren are lower on the Democratic side.
Leon County's preference for a Bush/Clinton matchup could be a reflection of the county’s political leanings with more conservative Democrats, and more moderate Republicans. But there's no way to know for sure.
“A lot of the folks who participate in the panel, they tend to be more active, if they’re willing to give their opinion—you know the person less likely to vote is also the person less likely to take this survey," he said.
The firm conducted the survey prior to the last Republican Presidential Debate.
