Westhill/Hotline Poll on “Moral Values”

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Today, the National Journal’s Hotline released their latest Westhill Partners/Hotline Poll.  Two things of note there for MP’s readers:  First, though the Hotline’s daily news summaries are available only through a pricey subscription, National Journal is making the complete Westhill/Hotline poll available online free of charge.  Second, the most recent poll (complete results here, Powerpoint summary here), includes a genuinely interesting finding regarding the “moral values”

I’ll let the front page commentary from Hotline Editor Chuck Todd explain:

This month’s edition of the Westhill/Hotline poll tries to give folks a better understanding of what “moral values” are in the minds of voters and which party represents which values.

— In an open-ended question, when asked to define “moral values,” 62% of the responses were character tests, while just 37% of the responses named a specific issue (be it gay marriage, abortion or corporate corruption).

Just to be clear, here is the question with responses sorted into the two categories Todd described (and also crosstabulated by party identification):

Two minor notes:  First, the question allowed for multiple responses, so the percentages in the table add up to more than 100%.  Second, the subtotals (37% and 62%) sum all mentions, so they may may double count some respondents.

Some may quibble with the way the Hotline categorized these responses, but the main point is the division between those responses that clearly referenced public policy issues and those that were more vague.  The implication:  For many voters — Democrat and Republican — “moral values” may have as much to do with perceptions of the candidate’s character as with their stands on specific issues.  For many, as Chuck Todd put it in an email, “moral values” in the context of politics means mostly “don’t act like Bill Clinton in office.”

Mark Blumenthal

Mark Blumenthal is political pollster with deep and varied experience across survey research, campaigns, and media. The original "Mystery Pollster" and co-creator of Pollster.com, he explains complex concepts to a multitude of audiences and how data informs politics and decision-making. A researcher and consultant who crafts effective questions and identifies innovative solutions to deliver results. An award winning political journalist who brings insights and crafts compelling narratives from chaotic data.