Posted on 03/18/2015 10:56:31 PM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
Asked whether they would rather vote for someone who agreed with their views on every issue that mattered, or someone who could beat the Democratic nominee, 72 percent said they want someone who can win.
Iowa and New Hampshire may hold the first two nominating contests of the 2016 presidential cycle, but South Carolina picks presidents — or so the saying goes in the state Gov. Scott Walker will visit Thursday and Friday.
Eleven months out from the Palmetto State’s first-in-the-South presidential primary, Walker, who is all but certain to run, finds himself in an enviable position, according to Clemson (S.C.) University political science professor David Woodard.
“I’m thinking that Scott Walker may be beloved in Dixie,” Woodard said.
Woodard conducted a poll in mid- to late February among 650 likely GOP South Carolina primary voters that found Walker in a statistical tie atop the burgeoning potential Republican presidential field. Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush led the pack at 18 percent and Walker tied with South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham at 17 percent. The poll had a 5-point margin of error.
Among those who have heard of Walker, only 5 percent had a negative opinion of him — the lowest among 14 Republicans. Meanwhile, 58 percent said they had heard of him, the fourth-lowest among the field. By comparison, 99 percent of respondents had heard of Bush, and a quarter of those had a negative opinion of the son and brother of two former presidents, who is also visiting the state this week.
“He’s known by half as many people and they still put him up for president,” Woodard said of Walker. “He’s got a tremendous upside. He looks to me like he’s the guy to beat.”
No Republican, except sitting presidents, has won both Iowa and New Hampshire in the modern era, often establishing a two-person race. South Carolina has historically helped clarify the frontrunner, providing enough momentum to carry the candidate through Super Tuesday to the nomination.
Nominee winners Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, George W. Bush, Bob Dole and John McCain all won in South Carolina.
That streak ended in 2012 when Newt Gingrich, coming off of two hot debate performances, won the state over eventual nominee Mitt Romney.
The 2016 field is still wide open, but will come more into focus by Labor Day, and sharpen further in January, said Matt Moore, chairman of the South Carolina Republican Party.
“If Iowa is a test of organization, and New Hampshire is a test of message, then South Carolina is a test of projectability,” Moore said. “The idea being, if you can win South Carolina, you can win nationally.”
South Carolina represents a cross-section of the national Republican Party, Moore said, with socially conservative evangelical voters in the northwest around Greenville, home of traditionalist Bob Jones University; pro-business, pro-globalization Republicans around Rock Hill in the suburbs of Charlotte, North Carolina; military, university and government employees in the middle of the state around Columbia; and more libertarian retirees from northern states along the Atlantic coast in Charleston and Myrtle Beach.
Walker plans a barnstorming tour of the state on Thursday and Friday with four stops at grassroots events planned in Columbia, Greenville, Rock Hill and Charleston.
Moore said Walker’s rise in the state has been palpable over the past two months after he gave a rousing speech at the Iowa Freedom Summit in late January. He also placed second in the Conservative Political Action Conference straw poll last month.
“For the average person, the executive experience is appealing. Being a Washington outsider is appealing,” said Moore, who remains neutral in the nominating process.
“South Carolina voters have a certain pragmatic streak. We like election winners. Most people see three election wins in four years and they’re impressed.”
That’s borne out in Woodard’s latest poll.
Asked whether they would rather vote for someone who agreed with their views on every issue that mattered, or someone who could beat the Democratic nominee, 72 percent said they want someone who can win.
SC continues to support mini-me Juan. Compleate looser.
Scott Walker is the best choice to prevent a RINO winning the nomination.
Shilling for JEB. Guess he couldn’t get mommy to campaign for him. Woodard has worked for Linda Graham. Nice try Woodard, the two (electability and philosophical orthodoxy) are not mutually exclusive and you know it, As a matter of fact they go together.
It should be reversed if the little brat thinks like Mommy, which he probably does.
What is the difference between a RINO and a Blue Dog Republican Governor in a purple state?
Gov. Scott Walker's Immigration Plan [3:49 YouTube]
Gov. Scott Walker on Iran, Russia and Keystone XL [5:57 YouTube]
Gov. Scott Walker on Legalizing Marijuana and Same Sex Marriage [2:53 YouTube]
One-third of Coloradans in this survey picked Walker. That’s better than double the support for second place Jeb Bush. The former Florida governor, busy raising campaign cash for his PAC, earned 14 percent support. Dr. Ben Carson was right behind, at 12 percent.
The survey is comprehensive. It includes only people who are extremely likely voters—those who’ve cast ballots in each of the last four Colorado Republican primaries. It also involves an unusually large sample size, with more than 8,200 respondents."
We need to stop the Dems from picking our candidate like in Miss
True. Would like to see Cruz win.
Lindsey won because there were no big name GOP candidates who would step up to challenge him.
South Carolina Ping!
Depends on who is more electable nationwide. Losers of elections, no matter how good, become totally irrelevant and powerless.
Cruz is a solidly Tea Party conservative. Walker is not. He's a Blue Dog Republican, whose allegiance is with the GOPe corruptocrat machine and the Chamber of Amnesty.
I choose only to vote for a Tea Party conservative. My guy loses, I still win on messaging, on principle. And next time, my guy will probably win. In fact, many conservatives beat Blue Dog Republicans in 2010 and 2014. I won't let you forget that.
South Carolina Ping
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Ping PS - Did you know SC is on the list of 25 states suing nobama over his amensty order? Read more here.
"COLUMBIA, S.C. -- At the start of Scott Walker's quest to be president, foreign policy has been a source of trouble. The Wisconsin governor has appeared shaky talking about world events and had to explain some perceived blunders.
But as Walker opened his first campaign swing across South Carolina here in Columbia on Thursday, foreign policy emerged as the highlight of his stump speech. Walker's sharp, rat-a-tat critique of President Obama's foreign policy record drew a sustained and boisterous standing ovation from the crowd of 150 Republican activists at a party luncheon.".......
I understand your thinking. However after 8 years of degradation of country by the community organizer, it is imperative we do not nominate someone who is more likely to lose to Hillary.
On pure agenda basis, I agree with you Cruz is more pure than Walker. What I am looking at is that Walker won 3 times in a bluish state. That shows me he can win nationally.
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