He out-polls Dole among coveted middle income voters. The widely reported gender gap is also still apparent. Dole's current favorability ratings are another indication of the softness of his support. His ratings have remained flat in spite of his front runner status and his prominent leadership in the budget battles in Washington. Ten Dole's closest GOP competitor in New Hampshire and Iowa, Steve Forbes, is becoming known nationally, but evokes a mixed reaction.
Half view the millionaire publisher favorably, and half unfavorably.
Prior to this survey, her public image had been on an upswing. In both the current survey and the earlier one, the First Lady's ratings were much more positive among women than among men. Paradoxically, despite this close division of opinion about the President's specific action on Bosnia, the public is more pleased with his overall foreign policy than previously. This increase may reflect a positive reaction to Clinton's decisiveness rather than his decision. Somewhat the same effect was found when Clinton sent U.S. troops to Haiti a year and a half ago.