Former President Bill Clinton is much more likely to help candidates he campaigns for than President Barack Obama, a new poll has found.
Both men are crisscrossing the country to try to give candidates a boost, but the Gallup poll released Tuesday shows that Clinton’s effectiveness is much greater, especially among Republicans and independents.
Twenty-one percent of independents said they would be more likely to vote for a candidate if Clinton campaigned for them, compared to 12 percent for Obama.
Reflecting the tough political climate, the net impact both men would have on a race is negative. Twenty-three percent of independents said they would be less likely to vote for a candidate if Clinton campaigned for them, a net impact of minus 2 percent. However, 39 percent of independents said an Obama visit would hurt a candidate more than it would help – a net impact of minus 27 percent.
Among Republicans, 9 percent said they are more likely to vote for a candidate Clinton campaigned for while 2 percent view an Obama visit as a positive.
The commander in chief comes closest to Clinton’s impact among Democrats. Clinton still leads in all categories but his net impact is only 48 percent compared to Obama’s 42 percent.