Early Exits: The Economy And Experience
Early network exit polls "show the economy is the breakaway issue, with nearly half of GOP voters and more than half" of Dems calling it the nation's top concern.
About one-third of GOP voters "said experience is the top quality they're looking for in a candidate; that's more than said so in other states." On the GOP side, "six in 10 voters are conservative, including a quarter who are 'very conservative.' About three in 10 are military veterans, nearly four in 10 are seniors and about two in 10 describe themselves as" indies. "About one in eight is Hispanic; up somewhat" from '00.
Among GOPers:
The top issue: Economy (47%), terrorism (19%), immigration (17%), Iraq (13%). Top candidate quality: Shares my values (37%), has the best experience (32%), says what he believes (20%), best chance to win in the general election (9%). Feelings toward the Bush admin.'s policies: 66% positive, 33% negative ("The Trail").
National Review Online’s Jim Geraghty has what he says are “second wave” exit numbers from FL: McCain 34.3%, Romney 32.6%, Giuliani 15.3%, Huckabee 12%.